EDITED  BY  HENRY  SUZZALLO 


THE  TEACHING  OF 
HANDWRITING 

BY 

FRANK   N.   FREEMAN 

ASSISTANT   PROFESSOR   OF   EDUCATIONAL   PSYCHOLOGY 
SCHOOL  OF   EDUCATION,    UNIVERSITY   OF   CHICAGO 


HOUGHTON  MIFFLIN  COMPANY 

BOSTON    •    NEW  YORK    •     CHICAGO    •    DALLAS 
ATLANTA     •     SAN  FRANCISCO 

^()e  aEliber£(ilie  Ij^ttisi  Camfaribge 
^  F   2   ^ 


COPYRIGHT,    I914,   BY   FRANK   N.    FRBBMAW 

ALL  RIGHTS  RESERVED  INCLUDING  THE  RIGHT  TO  REPRODUCS 
THIS  BOOK  OR  PARTS  THEREOF  IN  ANY  FORM 


CAMBRIDGE  •  MASSACHUSETTS 
PRINTED  IN  THE  U.S. A. 


1 5^^' 


CONTENTS 

Editor's  Introduction vii 

I.  The  Nature  of  the  Problem  .      .      .      .  i 
II.  The  Constitution  and  Development  of  the 

Writing  Process 8 

III.  The  Physiology  and  Hygiene  of  Writing  .  32 

IV.  The  Teaching  of  Handwriting      ...  $6 
V.  Aims  and  Standards  for  Handwriting      .118 

Outline 153 

Appendix 157 


278706 


FIGURES 

1.  Judd's  Hand  Tracer lO 

2.  Tracer-Records  of  Coordination       .      .11 

3.  Diagram  of  the  Relation  of  the  Body 

AND  Arms  to  the  Desk  and  the  Paper    g8 

4.  Specimens  of  Vertical  Writing  showing 

Assimilation  of  the  Upward  to  the 
Downward  Stroke  in  Direction      .      .  99 

5.  Illustrations  of  Formal  Drills        .      .  loi 

6.  Illustrations  of  the  Lateral  Movement 

Drills  as  used  in  the  Bennett  System  102 

7.  Illustrations  of  Exercises  with  later- 

ally Spaced  Letters 104 

8.  Classification  and  Order  of   Develop- 

ment OF  Letters  in  the  Economy  Sys- 
tem     107 

9.  Types   of   Illegible   Forms   of   Letters 

WHICH   are   to   be   counted   AS   ErRORS       I35 

10.  Specimen  of  Handwriting  for  Grading  .  141 
V 


FIGURES 

11.  Diagram  showing  the  Results  of  Meas- 

urement OF  Speed  and  Quality  of 
Writing  in  one  School  System  aiu) 
Tentative  Standards  for  Speed  and 
Quality i4S 

12.  Standard  Scale  for  Quality  and  Speed  150 

13.  For  use  in  Grading  Uniformity  of  Slant 

and  Alinement 151 

CHARTS 

(IN  APPENDIX) 

I.  Showing  Different  Degrees  of  Uniformity 
OF  Slant. 

II.  Showing  Different  Degrees  of  Uniformity 
OF  Alinement. 

III.  Showing  Different  Degrees  of  Quality  of 

Line. 

IV.  Showing  Different  Degrees  of  Excellence 

IN  Letter  Formation. 

V.  Showing  Different  Degrees  of  Excellence 
IN  Spacing. 


EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 

Tradition  has  dominated  the  teaching  of  hand- 
writing as  it  has  no  other  school  study.  It  has 
been  the  last  of  the  so-called  formal  subjects  to 
be  influenced  by  the  newer  educational  thought. 
Aside  from  the  notable  but  temporary  contro- 
versy as  to  vertical  or  slant  writing,  the  ped- 
agogy of  penmanship  has  scarcely  been  an  im- 
portant concern  in  educational  discussion.  Not 
until  quite  recently  have  we  really  had  any  im- 
portant professional  publications  upon  the  sub- 
ject. The  result  has  been  a  tardy  development 
of  economical  and  efficient  methods  of  teaching 
children  to  write. 

It  would  be  a  mistake  to  imply  that  teachers 
have  not  been  conscious  of  the  problems  involved 
in  the  teaching  of  handwriting.  They  have. 
Every  teacher  is  aware  of  the  controversies  as 
to  slant,  size,  position,  movement,  speed,  accu- 
racy, etc.  They  are  part  of  the  craft  troubles  of 
every  pedagogue,  inherited  along  with  traditions 
of  technique  and  subject-matter.  But  it  must  be 
frankly  admitted  that  teachers  as  a  class  have 
vii 


EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 

been  complacent  about  these  matters.  At  least 
they  have  given  far  less  energy  to  the  solution  of 
these  disputes  than  they  have  to  similar  ones  in 
reading,  spelling,  and  arithmetic.  This  attitude 
is  a  little  difficult  to  explain,  particularly  when 
it  is  understood  that  bad  penmanship,  like  poor 
spelling,  constitutes  one  of  the  readiest  means 
of  attacking  the  efficiency  of  teachers.  It  is  prob- 
able that  the  ordinary  experiences  of  teachers 
were  incapable  of  rendering  the  necessary  deci- 
sions. A  more  expert  psychological  analysis  and 
a  more  careful  pedagogical  experimentation  than 
ordinary  teachers  were  able  to  conduct  were 
needed  to  illumine  the  situation.  This  seems  to 
be  borne  out  by  the  fact  that  interest  in  the  ped- 
agogy of  writing  began  to  stir  the  moment  an 
educational  psychology  and  an  experimental 
pedagogy  began  to  be  developed. 

Until  very  recently  such  innovations  as  ap- 
peared in  the  teaching  of  penmanship  were  in- 
troduced by  those  whose  prime  interest  in  the 
matter  was  commercial  rather  than  professional. 
A  new  system  of  penmanship  had  to  have  some 
new  idea  to  commend  it  above  its  predecessors. 
In  consequence  penmanship  has  been  overrun 
with  plans  of  instruction  dominated  by  a  single 
device,  arrangement,  or  method.  This  exploita- 
viii 


EDITORS'   INTRODUCTION 

tion  of  some  one  phase  of  teaching  technique,  to 
the  consequent  neglect  of  others  that  should 
have  been  combined  with  it,  accounts  for  the 
more  or  less  faddistic  tone  which  has  accompanied 
programs  for  reform  in  the  teaching  of  hand- 
writing. A  new  writing  system  has  usually  meant 
an  attempt  to  find  a  new  specific  for  all  the  ills  of 
illegible  and  ungraceful  penmanship,  rather  than 
a  wide  survey  and  appraisal  of  all  the  means  at 
command.  In  such  circumstances,  it  was  natural 
that  the  rank  and  file  of  teachers  should  feel  a 
wholesome  suspicion  of  the  constant  attempts  at 
radical  change.  They  became  conservative,  and 
have  remained  more  conservative  in  this  subject 
than  in  any  other.  Accruing  systems  of  instruc- 
tion have  not  interested  teachers  as  much  as  they 
should,  considering  that,  however  extreme  and 
one-sided  these  plans  may  be,  they  usually  repre- 
sent successful  experience  in  a  particular  direc- 
tion. Out  of  this  lethargy  the  mass  of  teachers 
must  be  roused. 

It  will  not  be  difficult  to  interest  classroom 
teachers  in  the  improvement  of  their  methods  of 
teaching  pupils  to  write,  provided  they  be  offerorf 
a  program  of  constructive  suggestions  which  is 
known  to  rest  on  accurate,  scientific  investiga- 
tion. The  fact  that  teachers  are  conservative  in 
ix 


EDITOR'S  INTRODUCTION 

their  attitude  toward  change  in  the  teaching  of 
penmanship  does  not  imply  that  they  are  satis- 
fied with  their  own  accomplishments.  Penman- 
ship offers  one  of  the  most  tangible  checks  upon 
the  efficiency  of  teaching,  and  teachers  are  not 
blind  to  the  desirability  of  a  good  output.  They 
will  manifest  a  renewed  interest  in  the  problem 
the  moment  they  feel  that  the  discussion  is  sound. 
It  is  with  unusual  confidence  that  this  volume 
on  the  psychology,  physiology,  hygiene,  and  ped- 
agogy of  handwriting  is  offered  to  the  teaching 
profession.  It  will  interest  every  person  who  is 
in  any  way  concerned  with  the  teaching  of  the 
subject,  because  it  presents  a  far-reaching  and 
thorough  analysis  of  the  problem  and  its  various 
elements.  Moreover,  it  will  aid  thousands  of 
groping  teachers  in  diagnosing  the  defects  of 
their  children's  achievements,  in  suggesting  the 
appropriate  methods  for  inducing  improvement, 
and  in  giving  some  accurate  objective  standards 
for  the  measurement  of  individual  and  class 
progress.  It  represents  just  what  the  profession 
has  long  required,  —  a  treatment  so  scientific 
that  it  commands  respect,  and  so  simply  stated 
that  it  can  be  readily  used. 


THE   TEACHING    OF  HAND- 
WRITING 


THE  NATURE  OF  THE  PROBLEM 

Handwriting  a  new  form  of  expression 

Learning  to  write  consists  primarily  in  the  ac- 
quirement of  a  new  form  of  expression.  Because 
of  the  prominence  of  the  technical  problems 
connected  with  the  development  of  the  writing 
movement  we  must  not  lose  sight  of  the  fact  that 
the  movement  is  not  an  end  in  itself,  but  is 
merely  a  means  of  expression.  The  child  may  be 
able  to  form  the  letters  fluently  and  legibly  and 
yet  the  writing  may  be  deficient  because  it  has  not 
become  subordinated  to  his  thought  processes. 
Writing  has  not  been  thoroughly  learned  until 
the  child  can  give  his  attention  chiefly  to  the 
train  of  thought  he  is  engaged  in  expressing 
while  the  mechanics  of  the  production  of  the 
letters  are  relegated  to  the  realm  of  habit. 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

The  teaching  problem  centers  in  the  writing 
movement 

While  keeping  the  fact  in  mind  that  writing  is 
not  merely  a  movement  by  which  certain  marks 
are  made  on  paper,  it  remains  true  that  the  prac- 
tical problems  of  teaching  center  largely  in  the 
development  of  such  a  movement.  To  be  able 
to  guide  the  child  in  the  most  economical  and 
efficient  development  of  the  writing  movement 
demands  an  understanding  of  its  nature  and  the 
conditions  of  its  growth.  It  is  well  to  appreciate 
clearly,  in  the  first  place,  that  writing  is  not  an 
instinctive  form  of  expression.  In  this  it  differs 
from  speech.  The  child  instinctively  practices 
and  gains  control  over  the  syllables  which  will 
later  be  combined  to  form  the  words  of  his  na- 
tive language.  Children  in  fact  have  been  known 
to  develop  a  crude  language  of  their  own  even 
when  there  is  a  fully  developed  language  at  hand 
to  imitate.  But  no  such  instinctive  tendency 
underlies  the  writing  habit,  the  instinctive  activi- 
ties which  are  most  nearly  related  to  it  being 
the  grasping  reflex  and  the  indefinite  tendency 
to  handle  objects.  On  the  contrary  the  various 
simpler  movements  which  are  combined  to  form 
the  complex  writing  movement  are  wrought  into 

2 


THE  NATURE  OF  THE  PROBLEM 

a  harmonious  coordination  only  after  a  large 
amount  of  intelligently  directed  drill.  The  per- 
fection of  the  speech  activities  requires  practice 
also,  but  the  practice  in  this  case  merely  serves 
to  render  an  instinctive  adjustment  more  ac- 
curate, while  in  the  case  of  writing  the  adjust- 
ment is  not  only  perfected  but  is  created  through 
practice. 

An  artificial  product  of  training  rather  than  an 
instinctive  activity 

The  importance  of  the  teacher's  part  and  the 
character  of  the  teacher's  equipment  for  his  task 
are  determined  by  this  fact  that  writing  is  so 
largely  an  artificial  product  of  training  rather 
than  an  instinctive  activity.  The  teacher  should 
know  clearly  not  merely  what  kind  of  written 
characters  he  wishes  the  child  to  produce,  but 
also  the  constitution  of  the  movement  by  which 
they  are  to  be  made.  The  correct  movement  will 
not  develop  itself  automatically  in  the  effort  to 
nlake  lines  or  letters  of  a  certain  sort.  The  same 
line  may  be  made  by  a  movement  which  is  easy 
and  fluent  or  by  one  that  is  difficult  and  slow.  In 
order  that  the  teacher  may  choose  intelligently 
between  the  different  possible  ways  of  writing 
he  should  not  merely  follow  rules  of  thumb,  but 

3 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

should  know  something  of  the  way  in  which  the 
various  sensations,  images,  ideas  and  movements 
are  associated  in  writing. 

It  is  particularly  important  to  know,  further- 
more, not  merely  how  these  factors  are  associated 
in  adult  writing,  but  also  how  they  become  as- 
sociated in  the  development  of  the  child.  We 
need  to  know  the  changes  which  take  place  from 
one  period  of  the  child's  life  to  another,  and  how 
they  may  be  affected  by  training.  The  mistake 
is  often  made  of  merely  determining  upon  the 
best  form  of  writing  for  adults,  and  of  failing  to 
take  account  of  the  modifications  which  are  nec- 
essary to  be  made  in  adapting  the  aims  and 
methods  of  teaching  to  children  of  various  ages. 
The  development  of  writing  in  the  child  is  gov- 
erned not  only  by  the  general  laws  of  habit  for- 
mation as  applied  to  this  particular  process,  but 
also  by  the  laws  of  the  development  of  motor 
capacity  in  the  child. 

Psychology,  physiology,  and  hygiene  involved 

The  concern  of  the  teacher  is  not  confined  to 
the  hand  movements  and  the  expression  of  mean- 
ings by  them.  WMting  also  involves  adjustments 
of  other  parts  of  the  body.  The  eyes  are  em- 
ployed in  following  the  stroke  as  it  forms  the 
4 


THE  NATURE  OF  THE  PROBLEM 

letters  and  words,  in  order  that  they  may  be  com- 
pared with  a  standard  which  is  actually  before 
the  writer  or  is  held  in  the  imagination.  These 
adjustments  of  the  eyes,  besides  throwing  light 
upon  the  process  of  the  recognition,  which  is  a 
necessary  part  of  writing,  raise  problems  in  the 
hygiene  of  the  writing  process.  Indeed,  the  opin- 
ion which  was  held  regarding  the  effect  of  differ- 
ent styles  of  writing  on  the  eye  movements  and 
adjustments,  and  the  effect  of  these  movements 
and  adjustments  on  the  eye  and  its  functions, 
has  led  to  radical  modifications  in  the  manner 
of  writing  and  the  style  of  the  letters  which  are 
used.  The  same  significance  attaches  to  the  pos- 
ture which  the  child  assumes  in  writing.  Con- 
siderations of  hygiene  also  have  bearing  on  the 
character  of  the  materials  which  the  child  uses, 
and  the  amount  of  light  which  falls  upon  the 
paper,  together  with  the  direction  from  which  it 
comes. 

The  grasp  of  the  general  principles  of  the 
psychology,  physiology,  and  hygiene  of  writing, 
which  have  been  shown  to  be  an  important  part 
of  the  teacher's  equipment,  lays  the  foundation 
for  a  detailed  and  more  extensive  consideration 
of  the  practical  problems  of  instruction.  There 
are  certain  issues  about  which  controversies  have 

S 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

waged.  In  these  controversies  sometimes  one 
and  sometimes  the  other  party  has  prevailed. 
But  the  issues  have  not  been  permanently  set- 
tled because  the  decisions  have  not  been  made 
on  the  basis  of  a  thoroughgoing  understanding  of 
the  fundamental  principles  which  underlie  the 
solution.  Furthermore,  the  experience  gained  in 
the  trial  of  alternative  methods,  by  which  the 
answer  to  many  questions  of  detail  of  method 
must  be  reached,  has  not  been  made  available 
through  a  standardization  of  the  conditions  of 
the  trial  and  the  keeping  of  an  accurate  record  of 
the  results.  At  the  present  time  much  light  can 
be  thrown  on  the  ancient  controversies  by  bring- 
ing to  bear  upon  them  our  knowledge  of  the  fun- 
damental make-up  of  the  writing  process,  while 
much  remains  to  be  done  in  the  determination 
of  details  of  procedure  through  scientific  tests. 

In  order  to  make  the  teaching  of  any  subject 
as  efficient  as  possible,  we  must  know  not  merely 
the  mental  development  which  is  involved  in 
learning  the  subject  and  the  methods  of  teaching 
which  are  the  best,  but  we  should  also  know  def- 
initely what  results  should  be  attained  and  how 
these  results  may  be  measured.  We  may  thus 
set  before  ourselves  and  our  pupils  definite  aims 
and  standards  of  attainment.  Such  aims  and 
6 


THE  NATURE  OF  THE  PROBLEM 

standards  not  only  furnish  a  criterion  by  which 
we  may  decide  whether  progress  is  being  made, 
but  they  also  serve  as  spurs  or  motives  to  prog- 
ress. Accordingly  the  last  chapter  contains  an 
analysis  of  the  qualities  according  to  which  writ- 
ing may  be  judged  to  be  good  or  bad  and  a  stand- 
ard of  attainment  which  is  proposed  for  the 
pupils  of  the  various  grades  of  the  elementary 
school. 

The  aim  of  the  following  pages  is  to  treat  the 
problems  which  have  been  outlined  in  such  a 
way  as  to  be  of  service  to  the  teacher  who  is  con- 
fronted with  the  practical  situation  in  the  school- 
room. 


II 


THE  CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT  OF 
THE  WRITING  PROCESS 

The  writing  act  is  complex 

When  an  educated  adult  writes  a  letter  the  proc- 
ess appears  to  be  a  perfectly  easy  and  natural 
one.  The  connection  between  the  words  which  ex- 
press the  ideas  in  his  mind  and  the  hand  move- 
ments by  which  the  words  are  written  seems  to 
be  a  direct  and  matter-of-course  connection.  In 
the  same  way  all  actions  in  which  we  have  at- 
tained proficiency  appear  simple.  But  this  sim- 
plicity is  something  which  has  been  achieved 
through  a  long  course  of  practice.  The  outward 
act  remains  as  complex  as  ever,  but  the  actor  has 
ceased  to  pay  attention  to  all  of  its  details,  as  we 
shall  see  more  particularly. 

In  order  to  convince  ourselves  of  the  fact  that 
the  complexity  of  the  writing  movement  is  re- 
flected much  more  completely  in  the  mind  of  the 
child  than  in  our  own,  we  have  only  to  regard  our 
experience  in  an  activity  in  which  we  are  rela- 
tively unskilled.  We  can  reproduce  in  a  measure 
8 


CONSTITUTION   AND   DEVELOPMENT 

in  our  own  experience  the  condition  under  which 
the  child  writes  by  endeavoring  to  trace  an  out- 
line which  is  seen  in  a  mirror.  Under  these  con- 
ditions the  pencil  goes  off  in  all  sorts  of  unex- 
pected directions,  and  the  attention  is  drawn  to 
each  separate  adjustment  which  it  is  necessary  to 
make  in  order  to  bring  the  pencil  back  from  its 
erratic  course,  and  to  the  movements  of  the  hand 
and  fingers  by  which  these  adjustments  are  made. 
A  still  closer  analogy  exists  between  the  child's 
writing  and  the  attempts  of  an  adult  to  write 
with  the  toes.  This  is  not  at  all  a  fantastic  il- 
lustration. Anybody  can  learn  to  write  with  the 
toes  who  will  expend  the  same  amount  of  time  and 
effort  which  the  child  expends  in  learning  to  write 
with  his  fingers.  A  little  experimentation  with 
some  such  unusual  kind  of  writing  will  be  more 
efficacious  than  a  large  amount  of  mere  discussion 
in  making  one  realize  that  the  writing  habit  is  not 
instinctive,  that  it  must  be  developed  gradually 
and  by  much  practice,  and  that  it  is  very  complex. 

The  movement  is  composed  of  a  variety  of 
elementary  movements 

If  we  consider  merely  the  muscles  and  joints 
which  are  involved  in  the  writing  movement  we 
gain  some  notion  of  its  complexity.  Professor 

9 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 


Figure  i 


Reproduced  from  Genetic  Psychol- 
ogy for  Teachers,  by  Charles  Hubbard 
Judd .  Copyright,  1903 ,  by  D .  Apple- 
ton  and  Company. 


Judd  ^  has  furnished  us  with  a  method  of  dis- 
tinguishing some  of  the  elementary  movements 

in  writing  by  the 
use  of  his  **hand 
tracer,"  shown  in 
Fig.  I.  This  instru- 
ment is  fastened  by 
a  spring  about  the 
hand  at  the  base  of 
the  Httle  finger,  and 
records  the  move- 
ments of  the  hand 
and  arm.  In  some 
experiments  which 
were  made  with  this  instrument  it  was  found 
that  in  the  writing  of  most  individuals  both  the 
arm  and  fingers  play  an  essential  part  in  the  writ- 
ing movement.  This  is  made  evident  by  Fig.  2, 
which  is  copied  from  Professor  Judd's  report. 
Whether  or  not  it  is  best  to  move  the  fingers  as 
well  as  the  arm  in  writing  is  a  question  to  be 
discussed  more  fully  in  the  chapter  on  pedagogy, 
but  the  fact  that  most  persons  write  in  this  way 
is  significant.  Some  persons  write  with  more  and 
some  with  less  finger  movement,  but  only  a  very 
few,  who  have  had  special  training  beyond  that 
^  C.  H.  Judd,  Genetic  Psychology  for  Teachers,  chap.  vi. 
10 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

which  is  given  in  the  ordinary  school  course,  are 
able  to  exclude  finger  movements  entirely. 
In  the  case  of  the  majority  of  persons,  then. 


2^    ?    t     5     0    7      § 


t^  \Mj^ 


10         11 


(Si/jj^ 


li/jQU^J^   ^^^<^  U'^^'U^ 


Figure  2 


Reproduced   from   Genetic  Psychology  for  Teachers,  by  Charles 
Hubbard  Judd.  Copyright,  1903,  by  D.  Appleton  and  Company. 


there  is  division  of  labor  between  the  arm  and 
the  lingers.  One  function  of  the  arm  is  clearly  to 
carry  the  hand  along  the  line  from  the  left  to  the 
right  side  of  the  paper.  This  may  be  done  either 
by  swinging  the  forearm  about  on  a  pivot  formed 


II 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

by  the  elbow  or  by  the  muscle  pad  just  below  the 
elbow,  or  by  lifting  the  forearm  and  shifting  it 
along.  When  the  desk  is  low,  these  sideward  move- 
ments are  made  chiefly  at  the  shoulder  joint,  and 
therefore  by  muscles  at  the  shoulder.  When  the 
desk  is  high  so  that  the  elbow  is  held  some  distance 
from  the  body,  they  are  due  in  considerable  meas- 
ure to  rotation  at  the  elbow.  It  is  evident  that  as 
compared  with  shifting  the  position  of  the  elbow 
the  rotation  of  the  forearm  about  a  pivot  is  the 
more  economical,  since  in  this  latter  movement 
time  is  not  taken  to  interrupt  the  movement  by 
lifting  the  arm.  If  this  is  true  it  has  a  bearing  on 
the  relation  between  the  position  of  the  paper  and 
that  of  the  arm.  The  best  relation  is  one  in  which 
the  forearm  is  at  right  angles  to  the  line  of  writing. 
If  we  assume  that  the  arm  carries  the  hand 
along  the  line  while  the  fingers  form  the  letters, 
the  finger  and  arm  movements  may  still  work  to- 
gether in  one  of  two  ways.  Either  the  one  may 
alternate  with  the  other  or  the  two  may  go  on 
simultaneously.  The  alternating  relation  is  one 
frequently  seen  in  the  writing  of  young  children, 
but  it  is  by  no  means  confined  to  them.  One 
frequently  sees  children  and  older  people  write 
with  the  hand  in  a  given  position  until  the  fingers 
become  so  cramped  that  they  can  progress  no 

12 


COiNSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

further,  when  the  arm  is  lifted  and  the  hand  is 
carried  to  a  new  position.  According  to  the  other 
method  the  hand  and  arm  progress  along  the 
line  during  the  formation  of  the  letters,  and  it 
is  not  necessary  to  readjust  the  relation  between 
them  at  frequent  intervals. 

In  the  writing  movement  of  some  persons 
another  movement  cooperates  to  carry  the  hand 
along  the  line.  This  is  a  side-to-side  movement 
about  the  wrist  joint.  Such  a  movement  is  in- 
dicated in  the  tracer  record  when  the  line  of  the 
record  slants  downward  sharply  while  the  word  or 
group  of  letters  is  being  written,  and  then  takes  a 
backward  and  upward  course  in  the  readjustment 
preparatory  to  writing  the  next  word.  The  down- 
ward slant  is  produced  by  the  rotation  of  the  wrist 
to  right  and  the  upward  slant  by  its  return  to  the 
original  position  at  the  beginning  of  the  word. 

The  arm  not  only  carries  the  hand  along  the 
line,  but  also,  in  the  arm-movement  writing,  has 
a  share  in  the  formation  of  the  letters.  The  move- 
ment of  the  arm  in  this  case  is  made  chiefly  by  a 
rotation  in  the  ball  and  socket  joint  at  the  shoul- 
der, and  is  produced  by  the  shoulder  muscles.  The 
terms  which  are  sometimes  used  to  describe  this 
type  of  movement  convey  a  false  impression. 
Both  the  terms  ''forearm  movement"  and  ''mus- 

13 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

cular  movement"  make  it  appear  that  the  move* 
ment  is  produced  by  muscles  in  the  forearm,  but 
a  little  examination  will  show  that,  in  the  arm 
movement,  these  muscles  merely  serve  as  a  pas- 
sive rest  for  the  arm,  and  that  they  are  active  only 
in  producing  movements  of  the  wrist  and  fingers. 

It  is  clear,  if  we  examine  the  work  of  the  fingers, 
that  there  is  division  of  labor  among  them  also. 
The  pen  is  not  grasped  by  all  the  fingers,  but  by 
the  first  two  fingers  and  the  thumb.  This  is  not 
the  way  the  child  naturally  grasps  it.  The  earliest 
and  most  fundamental  method  of  grasping  such 
an  object  is  to  fold  the  fingers  about  it  without  us- 
ing the  thumb.  The  infant  and  the  monkey  grasp 
in  this  way.  The  next  most  natural  method  is  to 
bring  the  tips  of  all  the  fingers  together  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  thumb.  Monkeys  and  young  infants 
never  handle  things  in  this  way.  To  bring  two  of 
the  fingers  in  opposition  to  the  thumb  and  to  use 
the  others  to  support  the  hand  is  a  still  more  diffi- 
cult and  complex  thing  to  do.  It  has  been  found 
by  experiment  that  young  children  do  not  readily 
move  one  finger  in  isolation  from  the  others,  as, 
tor  example,  in  striking  successively  the  notes  of  a 
piano.    They  tend  rather  to  tap  with  all  at  once. 

The  use  of  a  pen  or  pencil  in  the  ordinary  way 
is  difficult,  then,  because  it  involves  separating 

14 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

the  action  of  some  of  the  fingers  from  that  of 
the  others  and  because  it  involves  the  united 
action  of  these  fingers  and  the  thumb.  This  con- 
clusion is  supported  also  by  the  anatomy  of  the 
muscle  and  nerve  groups  which  govern  the 
movements  of  the  fingers  and  thumb.  The  chief 
muscles  which  move  the  fingers  and  thumb  are 
located  in  the  forearm  —  not  in  the  fingers  as 
is  often  assumed.  The  nerve  cells  which  control 
the  fingers  form  a  group  which  are  naturally  as- 
sociated in  their  action,  and  the  nerve  cells  which 
control  the  thumb  form  another  group.  This 
fact  explains  why  the  coordination  between  fin- 
gers and  thumb  is  so  difficult. 

Whether  or  not  the  letters  are  formed  by  the 
movements  of  the  fingers,  then,  they  have  a  dis- 
tinct function  to  perform  since  two  of  them  have 
the  office  of  supporting  the  hand  while  the  other 
two,  with  the  thumb,  grasp  the  pen.  When  these 
latter  also  contribute  a  large  share  toward  the 
formation  of  the  letters,  the  adjustment  of 
the  movements  to  one  another  becomes  delicate 
and  complicated.  The  matter  has  been  studied 
by  an  Italian  investigator,  Obici,^  who  invented 

*  G.  Obici,  Ricerche  sulla  Fisiolgia  della  Scrittura.  Ri vista 
sperimentale  di  frenitica  e  medicina  legale  della  alienazioni 
men  tale.   1897,  23,  623  and  870. 

IS 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

an  instrument  which  he  calls  a  ^'graphograph." 
The  device  consists  in  a  pen  to  which  are  at- 
tached three  levers  against  which  the  thumb  and 
first  two  fingers  press.  The  pressure  which  they 
exert  is  transmitted  pneumatically  to  delicately 
adjusted  pointers.  By  means  of  this  instrument 
we  can  measure  exactly  the  actions  of  the  fingers 
which  are  presented  to  ordinary  observation  less 
precisely. 

A  succession  of  strokes  of  various  kinds  —  up- 
ward and  downward,  oblique  and  upright,  curved 
to  the  right  or  left  or  straight  —  presents  the 
different  combinations  of  movements  in  continu- 
ally changing  order.  Each  component  movement 
must  be  made  at  the  proper  time  and  with  the 
proper  amount  of  force  or  the  stroke  will  be  dis- 
torted. For  example,  a  downward  stroke  is  made 
mainly  by  the  pressure  of  the  first  finger  against 
the  pen,  while  the  thumb  and  second  finger 
guide.  If  additional  pressure  is  exerted  by  the 
second  finger  the  line  will  deviate  to  the  left.  To 
produce  a  curve  such  as  that  of  the  downward 
stroke  of  the  c  there  must  be  an  excess  pressure 
exerted  first  by  the  second  finger  and  then  by 
the  thumb.  When  the  stroke  reaches  the  bottom 
the  first  finger  must  relinquish  the  chief  role, 
which  then  passes  to  the  thumb.  If  the  next  up- 
i6 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

ward  stroke  forms  the  first  stroke  of  an  e,  for 
example,  the  middle  finger  first  gives  way  and 
then  presses  against  the  thumb  to  form  the  loop 
at  the  top.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the  next  letter 
is  the  w,  the  second  finger  exerts  a  somewhat 
stronger  pressure  during  the  upward  stroke  and 
then  releases  it  at  the  top.  Such  is  the  ever- 
shifting  balance  of  forces  by  which  the  appar- 
ently simple  writing  movement  proceeds.  It  is 
not  to  be  wondered  at  that  the  child's  pen  runs 
off  the  track,  and  the  precision  of  the  adult  writer 
is  only  to  be  ascribed  to  the  wonderful  efficiency 
of  an  act  which  has  become  a  habit  through  long 
practice. 

This  analysis  of  the  manner  in  which  the  com- 
ponent finger  movements  are  coordinated  in  pro- 
ducing the  letters  furnishes  the  explanation 
of  the  fact  that  arm-movement  writing  always 
tends  toward  an  angular  style.  The  upward  and 
downward  movements  can  very  well  be  made  by 
the  oscillation  of  the  arm,  but  the  complex 
curves  which  compose  the  letter  forms  are  more 
easily  produced  by  the  fingers. 

The  movements  which  have  been  described 
'     are  sufficient  to  produce  a  succession  of  letters 
;     and  words.  An  additional  movement  is  often  em- 
ployed, however,  as  a  corrective.    As  the  hand 

I  ^7 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

moves  across  the  page  with  the  elbow  as  center 
of  rotation,  the  direction  in  which  the  fingers 
point  is  constantly  changing.  At  the  right  end 
of  the  line  they  point  much  more  toward  the 
right  than  at  the  left  end.  The  effect  of  this 
is  to  make  the  letters  slant  more  toward  the 
right  as  the  hand  progresses  along  the  line. 
This  error  may  be  compensated  for  in  more  than 
one  way,  but,  as  Professor  Judd  has  pointed  out, 
some  writers  make  the  correction  by  means  of  an 
additional  movement.  It  may  be  easily  deter- 
mined by  the  reader  for  himself  that  if  a  series 
of  strokes  are  made  with  the  hand  turned  over 
toward  the  right  side  and  then  another  series 
are  made  with  the  hand  turned  with  the  palm 
down,  the  second  series  is  more  nearly  vertical 
then  the  first.  This  turning  of  the  hand  toward 
the  left  so  that  the  palm  faces  downward  is  called 
pronation,  and  it  will  be  readily  seen  that  it  is 
suited  to  correct  the  overslant  of  the  letters  at 
the  right  at  the  end  of  the  line. 

We  have  completed  the  Hst  of  the  movements 
which  combine  directly  to  form  the  writing  co- 
ordination, but  it  is  evident,  on  a  moment's  con- 
sideration, that  we  have  not  exhausted  the  list 
of  bodily  adjustments  which  are  necessary  to 
the  activity.  The  body  is  held  erect  to  furnish 
i8 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

support  to  the  arm.  The  left  hand  holds  the 
paper  and  moves  it  from  time  to  time  and  the 
left  arm  steadies  and  supports  the  body.  Finally, 
the  eyes  and  head  are  adjusted  to  the  perception 
of  the  characters  which  are  being  formed.  We 
shall  see  that  many  important  practical  ques- 
tions are  concerned  with  the  maintenance  of  a 
healthful  posture  and  the  avoidance  of  eye- 
strain. 

The  fact  that  the  eyes  are  adjusted  to  the  per- 
ception of  what  is  being  written  calls  attention  to 
the  fact  that  there  are  other  elements  in  writ- 
ing beside  the  mere  muscular  movements.  These 
are  the  sensations  and  perceptions  which  serve  as 
a  guide  and  standard  for  the  movement. 

Writing  also  involves  control  sensations  and 
language  ideas 

The  guidance  or  control  of  the  writing  move- 
ment by  vision  is  particularly  prominent  in  the 
early  stages  of  learning.  The  adult  can  write 
blindfolded  nearly  as  well  as  with  his  eyes  open. 
The  only  features  of  the  writing  which  suffer 
noticeably  are  the  size,  spacing,  and  alinement. 
The  child,  however,  is  largely  dependent  upon 
his  sense  of  sight  for  the  correct  formation  of  the 
letters  as  well  as  for  the  control  of  the  writing  in 
19 


V 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

regard  to  these  more  general  aspects.  In  the  adult 
the  immediate  control  of  the  details  of  the  ac- 
tivity has  been  largely  assumed  by  the  sen- 
sations of  movement  and  the  pressure  sensations. 
The  importance  of  these  latter  may  be  very  well 
demonstrated  by  writing  with  a  pen  which  is  so 
constructed  that  the  pressure  of  the  pen  against 
the  paper  is  not  perceptible.  Under  such  condi- 
tions the  writing  suffers  not  only  in  alinement 
and  spacing,  but  also  in  the  formation  of  the 
letters.  This  is  particularly  true  when  the  eyes 
are  closed.  When  the  eyes  are  open  the  adult 
writer  can  in  a  measure  compensate  for  the  loss 
of  the  sensations  of  pressure  by  making  a  closer 
inspection  than  usual  of  the  movement  of  the 
pen. 

We  may  conceive  of  the  pressure  and  movement 
sensations  in  writing  as  being  not  yet  organized 
in  the  experience  of  the  young  child.  That  is,  he 
does  not  yet  know  with  any  assurance  how  it 
feels  to  write  a  certain  letter  or  word,  but  must 
rely  upon  his  eye  to  inform  him  whether  or  not  he 
is  doing  as  he  intends.  As  he  writes  more,  these 
sensations  become  organized.  Certain  of  them, 
following  each  other  in  certain  order,  come  to  re- 
present particular  letters  or  words.  This  seems 
always  to  occur  when  writing  becomes  fluent 

20 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

and  easy.  -The  practical  application  of  this  fad 
is  that  the  child  must  write  a  great  deal  and  at 
a  sufficient  speed  for  the  successive  sensations 
of  movement  and  pressure  to  become  associated 
with  one  another,  and  with  the  visual  forms 
which  they  represent. 

But  writing  is  not  merely  the  production  on 
paper  of  certain  forms.  These  forms  have  a  mean- 
ing, and  writing  is  for  the  purpose  of  expressing 
this  meaning.  In  writing,  as  in  reading,  one  says 
over  more  or  less  completely  to  himself  the  words 
which  are  being  written,  and  the  word  images 
are  the  symbols  of  ideas.  The  writer  starts  out 
with  an  idea  which  he  wishes  to  express.  This 
idea  is  represented  by  groups  of  words  imaged 
more  or  less  clearly  as  heard  or  spoken,  or  both. 
These  word  images  then  call  into  being  the  ap- 
propriate writing  movements. 

How  the  mental  process  becomes  simplified  through 
practice 

In  the  manner  of  the  connection  between  the 
idea  and  the  movements  of  writing,  there  are  im- 
portant changes  in  the  course  of  development. 
As  has  beeu  said,  to  the  practiced  writer  the 
writing  movement  seems  to  follow  perfectly 
naturally  upon  the  idea  to  be  expressed,  but  in 

21 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

the  experience  of  the  child  there  is  a  chain  of  in- 
termediate processes.  One  may  get  some  idea  of 
the  process  through  which  the  child  must  go  by- 
examining  his  own  experience  in  using  a  type- 
writer. Even  if  one  is  proficient  in  the  use  of 
this  machine,  the  learning  process  is  recent 
enough  so  that  it  can  probably  be  recalled.  Start- 
ing with  the  idea,  one  in  the  early  stages  of  prac- 
tice has  to  form  definitely  in  his  mind  the  words 
which  express  the  idea.  The  phraseology  is 
thought  out  more  clearly  in  advance  than  in  the 
more  familiar  processes  of  speaking  or  writing. 
The  case  is  like  that  of  a  person  who  learns  a 
foreign  language  as  an  adult,  but  who,  instead  of 
putting  his  thought  directly  into  the  foreign 
words,  thinks  them  in  his  own  tongue  and  then 
translates. 

The  next  step  after  clearly  formulating  our 
ideas  in  words  is  to  spell  the  words  out.  One  does 
not  realize  how  automatic  the  process  of  spelling 
becomes  in  ordinary  handwriting  until  he  tries 
to  write  by  the  less  familiar  process.  He  has  to 
think  out  the  sequence  of  the  letters  as  seen  on 
the  printed  page,  or  as  pronounced  orally,  and 
then  follow  this  sequence  in  the  letters  on  the 
keyboard.  Then  each  movement  which  must  be 
made  in  order  to  write  the  successive  letters  must 

22 


CONSTITUTION   AND  DEVELOPMENT 

be  thought  and  made  separately.  Finally,  after 
the  movement  is  made,  it  is  given  a  parting 
thought  to  make  sure  it  was  the  one  which  was 
intended. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  by  the  time  these  pro- 
cesses have  been  gone  through,  the  thought  con- 
nection has  been  lost.  So  it  must  be  with  the 
child  who  is  in  the  early  stages  of  learning  to 
write.  He  must  go  through  the  same  stages  of 
anticipating  the  words  he  is  to  write,  the  spelling 
of  these  words,  and  something  of  the  details  of 
the  form  of  the  letters  and  of  the  position  of  the 
hand,  the  movements,  etc.,  by  which  the  letters 
are  produced.  Hence  the  well-known  fact  that 
young  children  cannot  express  their  thoughts 
fluently  by  writing.  The  mechanics  of  the  writing 
process  stand  in  the  forefront  of  the  attention  and 
interrupt  the  flow  of  thought.  As  practice  pro- 
ceeds, these  steps  follow  one  another  more  rap- 
idly and  more  closely  so  that  they  interrupt  the 
thought  process  less.  The  writing  process  be- 
comes more  nearly  automatic  —  that  is,  it  be- 
comes capable  of  being  carried  on  without  the 
direction  of  attention.  The  attention  can  then 
be  occupied  more  fully  with  the  meaning  which 
is  to  be  expressed. 

There  is  a  certain  time  when  the  child  must  be 

23 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

thinking  chiefly  of  the  formation  of  the  letters 
and  the  mechanics  of  the  process,  but  this  stage  in 
learning  may  be  prolonged  beyond  the  time  when 
it  is  necessary  or  desirable.  A  person  may  have 
the  mechanics  of  writing  highly  developed,  but 
not  be  able  to  use  it  efficiently  in  the  expression 
of  his  thought.  It  sometimes  occurs  that  a  per- 
son can  write  very  excellently  when  it  is  purely 
a  formal  matter,  but  uses  an  inferior  '^hand" 
when  he  is  writing  a  letter.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  sometimes  happens  that  a  person  with  a  halt- 
ing, uncertain  movement  develops  fluency  and 
ease  when  he  grows  accustomed  to  the  use  of 
writing  to  express  his  thoughts. 

The  opposite  danger  of  releasing  attention  too 
early  from  the  mechanics  of  writing  or  the  de- 
tails of  form  is  also  present.  Generally  speaking, 
improvements  in  the  character  of  the  movement 
or  the  form  of  the  letters  cease  when  one  no 
longer  exercises  a  critical  supervision  over  the 
process.  Mere  practice  does  not  bring  improve- 
ment. The  pupil  should  early  begin  to  use  writ- 
ing as  a  means  of  expression  of  meaning,  but 
there  should  also  be  practice  periods  when  the 
attention  is  directed  to  the  improvement  of  the 
habit  until  the  habit  has  reached  the  degree  of 
perfection  which  is  thought  desirable. 
24 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

The  movement  becomes  organized  with  practice 

From  the  point  of  view  of  the  thought  or  mean- 
ing side  of  writing  then,  we  have  found  that  writ- 
ing becomes  increasingly  automatic  with  prac- 
tice. The  attention  is  freed  from  the  details  of 
the  movement.  From  the  point  of  view  of  the 
movement,  this  process  consists  in  a  more 
thorough  organization  of  the  elements  of  the  co- 
ordination. In  the  first  place,  excess  movements 
become  eliminated.  When  the  child  begins  to 
write,  the  nerv^ous  energy  is  diffused  throughout 
a  large  part  of  the  body.  The  face  is  contorted, 
the  feet  are  twisted  about,  the  left  hand  is  tightly 
clasped,  and  the  body  is  bent.  The  same  phe- 
nomenon may  be  observed  in  the  learning  of  the 
adult,  as,  for  example,  when  in  learning  to  ride  a 
bicycle  he  grips  the  handlebar  with  unnecessary 
force.  Out  of  the  excess  supply  of  movements, 
the  child  must  learn  to  use  only  such  as  produce 
the  desired  movements  of  the  pen. 

The  elimination  of  useless  movements,  or  the 
selection  of  appropriate  ones,  is  one  of  the  funda- 
mental processes  in  motor  learning.  A  practical 
question  which  may  be  raised  concerning  it  is 
whether  the  result  can  best  be  reached  by  empha- 
sizing the  movements  which  are  to  be  selected  or 

25 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

those  which  are  to  be  eliminated.  In  general,  it 
is  much  better  to  fix  attention  on  the  movements 
which  are  to  be  made,  and  allow  the  superfluous 
movements  to  drop  out  of  themselves.  It  is  a 
familiar  fact  that  the  bicycle  rider  avoids  the 
ditch  best  by  keeping  his  attention  on  the  path. 
The  nervous  energy  is  automatically  withdrawn 
from  the  channels  leading  to  the  muscles  not  con- 
cerned when  the  nervous  channels  to  the  appro- 
priate muscles  become  more  open.  Directions 
should  be  positive,  then,  rather  than  negative. 
The  pupil  should  be  shown  what  to  do  rather 
than  what  not  to  do.  The  only  exception  to  this 
rule  appears  when  the  pupil  has  fallen  into  bad 
habits  which  need  to  be  broken  up.  Then  it  may 
be  necessary  to  call  attention  to  the  thing  to  be 
avoided. 

The  appropriate  movements  become  selected 
from  among  the  great  number  of  superfluous 
movements  as  they  become  organized  into  modes 
of  action  which  produce  the  desired  result.  The 
nervous  energy  is  at  first  widely  diffused  because 
the  nerve  cells  which  control  the  groups  of  mus- 
cles which  are  associated  successively  and  simul- 
taneously in  the  writing  movement  have  not  be- 
come so  connected  that  the  nervous  energy  finds 
free  outlet  through  them.  The  organization  of 
26 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

these  nerve  centers  can  proceed  only  through 
practice  —  that  is,  through  trying  to  make  the 
movement  which  will  produce  the  forms  set  be- 
fore the  child  as  a  model.  There  is  no  royal  road 
to  this  end.  The  child  must  learn  by  the  slow 
method  of  trial  and  success.  He  knows  roughly 
what  form  he  desires  to  make,  but  does  not  know 
how  to  go  about  it  to  make  it,  except  in  a  general 
way.  He  has  no  recourse  but  to  make  the  attempt. 
He  succeeds  partly  because  he  has  learned  to 
make  movements  somewhat  similar  in  the  past, 
but  his  success  is  not  complete.  He  now  tries  to 
improve  on  his  first  attempt.  If  he  fails,  he  tries 
again.  If  he  succeeds,  he  may  be  able  to  repeat 
his  performance.  But  he  is  not  able  to  anticipate 
the  method  by  which  success  is  reached.  He  can 
only  retain  the  measure  of  success  he  has  attained 
by  blind  trial  until  further  trials  bring  him  nearer 
his  goal.  Practice  or  drill,  therefore,  is  the  only 
means  of  learning  to  write.  The  essentials  of 
good  drill  will  be  discussed  in  the  chapter  on 
pedagogy. 

As  the  movement  becomes  organized  the  attention 
comes  to  comprehend  larger  units 

When  the  child  first  essays  to  write  the  letters 
which  are  before  him  (and  which  compose  the 
27 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

words  which  he  uses  in  his  spoken  language),  his 
attention  is  absorbed,  as  we  have  seen,  in  repro- 
ducing the  forms.  In  striving  to  copy  the  forms 
of  the  letters,  he  keeps  their  appearance  in 
mind  as  well  as  he  can  and  watches  the  letter 
which  he  is  making  in  order  to  see  when  it  devi- 
ates from  the  model  and  to  bring  back  the  stroke 
when  it  goes  astray.  He  follows  the  stroke  bit  by 
bit  with  the  eye,  and  it  is  his  eye  which  seems 
mainly  to  "control"  the  stroke.  After  he  has 
made  the  various  letters  over  and  over  he  gradu- 
ally learns  how  it  feels  to  make  them,  as  has 
already  been  said,  and  he  finds  it  no  longer 
necessary  to  follow  the  stroke  minutely. 

Now  is  the  time  when  the  child  can  hold  in 
mind  several  strokes  or  letters  at  a  time.  He  can 
safely  assume  that  the  motor  habit  under  the 
control  of  the  sensations  of  movement  and  pres- 
sure will  execute  the  details  of  the  letters.  As 
the  child  thus  holds  in  mind  several  letters  or  a 
word  at  a  time,  it  comes  about  that  the  individual 
strokes  are  subordinated  to  the  more  general 
features  of  the  writing.  Thus  he  can  pay  more 
attention  to  the  uniformity  in  size,  slant,  etc.,  of 
the  letters.  It  may  be  seen,  by  comparing  the 
writing  of  children  with  that  of  adults,  that  chil- 
dren commonly  form  the  letters  more  carefully, 
28 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

but  that  the  writing  as  a  whole  is  more  uneven 
or  ragged. 

Another  result  of  this  broadening  of  the  scope 
of  the  attention  concerns  the  movement.  The 
movement  becomes  more  uniform,  or,  in  other 
words,  it  acquires  greater  rhythm.  The  succes- 
sive strokes  tend  to  be  made  at  equal  intervals  of 
time  as  though  to  music.  This  undoubtedly  ex- 
plains much  of  the  deviation  from  correct  form 
in  the  writing  of  adults.  Parts  of  letters  which 
would  take  more  time  if  made  correctly  are 
hurried  over  to  avoid  breaking  the  regular  beat 
of  the  strokes.  At  the  same  time,  rhythmic  move- 
ment has  a  great  advantage  on  the  score  of  ease 
and  rapidity.  We  shall  consider  its  practical  im- 
portance again  in  the  chapter  on  pedagogy. 

Learning  to  write  is  conditioned  partly  by  the 
stages  of  development  at  diferent  ages 

We  have  been  considering  those  features  of  the 
formation  of  the  writing  habit  which  are  inherent 
in  the  learning  process  itself  and  which  are  the 
same  whatever  the  age  or  the  degree  of  maturity 
of  the  learner.  Certain  questions  regarding  the 
time  and  manner  of  teaching  writing,  however, 
require  for  their  solution  a  knowledge  of  the  ca- 
pacity of  the  child  at  different  ages  for  complex 
29 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

and  delicately  adjusted  movement.  Systems  of 
teaching  which  are  found  to  be  suitable  to  youths 
or  adults  in  business  colleges  are  often  applied 
without  sufficient  modification  to  children  in  the 
primary  grades.  Such  procedure  results  in  a 
waste  of  energy  and  effort. 

The  child's  ability  to  make  precise,  complex, 
and  rapid  movements  increases  continuously 
from  the  first  year  at  least  to  youth.  For  practi- 
cal purposes,  however,  certain  division  points 
may  be  designated  which  mark  changes  in  the 
child's  attitude  toward  his  movements  and  an 
increase  in  capacity  more  rapid  than  ,at  other 
times.  One  such  point  is  of  particular  significance 
for  the  teaching  of  writing  because  it  falls  within 
the  period  of  the  grades. 

Students  of  the  child  from  different  points  of 
view  have  independently  fixed  on  the  age  of  nine 
or  thereabouts  as  a  time  when  the  child  becomes 
willing  and  able  to  apply  to  his  movements  some 
outward  standard.  In  his  play,  for  example,  the 
child  now  sets  an  aim  to  his  movements.  Before 
this,  they  were  free,  and  enjoyed  merely  for  them- 
selves; or  they  were  dramatic  or  symbolic  in 
character.  Now,  the  child  not  only  runs  because 
he  enjoys  the  experience  or  pretends  that  he  is  an 
Indian  or  what  not,  but  he  nms  to  excel  some* 

30 


CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 

body  else  or  even  to  make  a  record.  So  also  in 
drawing  he  ceases  to  make  merely  rough  sketches 
which  represent  but  do  not  resemble  objects,  and 
makes  an  effort  to  portray  more  accurately  their 
form  and  spatial  relations.  A  brief  study  made 
by  the  author  indicates  also  that  the  facility  of 
movement  in  making  simple  upward  and  down- 
ward strokes  with  a  pencil  increases  more  rapidly 
at  this  time  than  during  the  rest  of  the  child's 
school  life. 

The  methods  and  aims  of  training  should  take 
account  of  these  facts  and  require  more  of  the 
child  in  the  intermediate  than  in  the  primary 
grades.  A  system  which  sets  the  same  standard 
of  speed  or  accuracy  before  children  in  the  dif- 
ferent stages  is  fundamentally  wrong.  The  appli- 
cation of  this  principle,  and  of  the  others  which 
have  been  set  forth  in  this  chapter,  is  a  mat- 
ter to  be  discussed  more  particularly  in  the 
following  pages. 


Ill 

THE  PHYSIOLOGY  AND  HYGIENE  OF  WRITING 

In  the  preceding  chapter  we  saw  that  one  does 
not  write  with  the  arm  alone.  The  body  fur- 
nishes a  base  or  support  for  the  arm,  the  left  hand 
is  often  engaged  in  holding  the  paper,  the  eyes 
rotate  and  the  lenses  of  the  eyes  are  focused  upon 
the  page.  These  facts  are  of  particular  signifi- 
cance because,  first,  the  position  of  the  body  may 
be  such  as  to  distort  the  skeleton,  particularly 
the  spine,  causing  a  permanent  deviation  from 
the  normal  adjustment;  and,  second,  the  way  in 
which  the  eyes  have  to  be  adjusted  in  certain 
positions  of  the  paper  or  kinds  of  writing  is  re- 
garded by  many  as  injurious  to  the  sight.  We 
shall  at  once  consider  the  requirements  of  pos- 
ture and  then  the  requirements  of  the  hygiene  of 
vision. 

The  requirements  of  good  posture  and  their 
consequences  for  writing 

The  requirements  of  good  posture  can  be  put 
in  a  few  words.   The  deviations  from  good  pos- 
32 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

ture  and  the  causes  of  these  deviations  are  some- 
what more  complex.  We  shall  take  up  the  im- 
portant features  of  good  posture,  discussing  first 
the  positive  requirements,  then  the  kinds  of  de- 
viation which  appear  when  the  child  writes,  and 
finally  the  conditions  of  writing  —  the  position 
of  paper,  slant  of  writing,  etc. — which  affect 
posture  favorably  or  unfavorably. 

Before  entering  upon  this  discussion,  a  word 
should  be  said  to  prevent  a  too  rigid  appHcation 
of  the  principles  of  posture.  Perhaps  the  danger 
is  rather  in  the  opposite  direction,  but  it  is  well 
to  know  that  when  we  allow  what  seems  to  be  oc- 
casional lapses  from  what  is  ideally  best,  we  are 
not  compromising  with  our  principles,  but  are 
applying  another  equally  valid  principle.  This 
principle  is  that  it  is  not  ideal  for  the  child  to 
maintain  any  position  whatever,  except  one  of 
relaxation,  for  a  considerable  length  of  time.  We 
must  allow  and  encourage  frequent  changes  of 
position,  and  the  younger  the  child  the  more  fre- 
quent the  changes  must  be. 

The  danger  to  avoid  is  that  the  child  shall 
deviate  habitually  in  one  particular  direction. 
This  causes  maladjustment  of  the  bones,  or  com- 
pression of  some  of  the  organs,  or  both.  But  it  is 
perfectly  natural  for  the  child  at  one  moment  to 

33 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

take  a  position  which  deviates  in  one  direction 
from  what  may  be  considered  abstractly  the 
normal  or  ideal,  and  at  the  next  moment  the 
position  which  deviates  in  the  other  direction. 
We  may  define  and  use  the  ideal  or  normal, 
then,  as  the  posture  about  which  the  child  may 
deviate  in  several  directions,  but  from  which 
he  should  not  deviate  permanently  in  any 
direction. 

The  first  requirement  of  good  posture  is  that 
the  body  and  head  be  held  erect.  This  rule  has 
reference  to  the  forward  and  backward  bending 
of  head  or  body.  With  reference  to  the  body,  it 
means  first  that  the  back  shall  not  be  rounded 
out,  thus  compressing  the  lungs,  stomach,  etc., 
and  causing  the  protrusion  of  the  abdominal 
wall.  The  result  of  this  position  is  restriction  of 
the  depth  of  breathing,  interference  with  the 
process  of  digestion,  congestion  of  blood  in  the 
abdomen,  and  a  lowering  of  the  tone  of  the  mus- 
cles of  the  abdominal  wall. 

A  second  defect  consists  in  leaning  either  for- 
ward or  backward  —  usually  forward  —  so  that 
the  center  of  gravity  of  the  body  lies  outside  the 
base  formed  by  the  pelvis.  In  such  a  posture 
the  position  of  the  body  must  be  maintained  by 
continual  and  unnecessary  muscular  tension  — 

34 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

a  waste  of  nervous  energy.  These  two  defects 
may  exist  in  combination. 

These  defects  of  posture  may  be  avoided  in 
large  measure  by  requiring  the  child  to  sit  well 
back  in  the  chair,  by  seeing  that  the  feet  rest  flat 
on  the  floor,  by  having  the  seat  at  such  a  height 
that  the  feet  rest  on  the  floor  and  the  thighs  are 
level,  and  by  having  the  seat  project  about  three 
inches  under  the  desk.  These  requirements  are 
generally  recognized.  Another  requirement  is 
equally  important,  which  is  that  the  desk  top 
should  slant  toward  the  writer.  This  require- 
ment affects  the  position  of  the  head  as  well  as 
that  of  the  body.  When  the  paper  on  which  one 
is  writing  lies  horizontally,  there  is  a  very  strong 
impulse  to  bend  the  head  and  body  forward  in 
order  to  prevent  the  unpleasant  strain  resulting 
from  turning  the  eyes  down  in  their  sockets 
through  a  considerable  angle.  It  may  also  be 
that  the  impulse  is  due  to  the  unrecognized  mo- 
tive of  seeking  to  look  at  the  paper  perpendicu- 
larly rather  than  at  an  angle.  That  the  impulse 
to  bend  forward  is  present  is  indisputable,  and 
that  it  is  lessened  by  tilting  the  desk  forward 
fifteen  degrees  or  more  is  a  fact  of  observation. 

The  fault  of  bending  the  head  forward  and 
the  remedy  have  been  mentioned.  Some  forward 
35 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

bending  is,  of  course,  necessary.  No  exact  rule 
can  be  laid  down  as  to  how  much  can  be  allowed 
with  impunity.  Perhaps  we  may  say  that  the 
danger  line  is  reached  when  the  head  is  bent 
through  an  angle  of  forty-five  degrees  from  the 
perpendicular.  Extreme  bending  of  the  neck  re- 
stricts the  circulation  and  causes  congestion  of 
blood  in  the  eyes. 

The  other  chief  defects  of  posture  consist  in 
bending  the  head  or  body  to  one  side  or  the 
other,  or  in  turning  the  head  or  body  in  either 
direction. 

Bending  or  turning  the  trunk,  which  causes 
curvature  of  the  spine,  may  be  largely  avoided  by 
requiring  the  pupil  to  face  the  desk  squarely, 
and  to  rest  both  forearms  just  below  the  elbow 
on  the  desk  at  an  equal  distance  from  the  body. 
This  implies  that  the  paper  be  placed  directly 
before  the  pupil  on  the  desk,  and  not  to  the  right 
of  the  middle  line,  as  has  often  been  done. 

The  remaining  defect  of  posture  consists  in 
turning  or  bending  the  head.  The  danger  is,  of 
course,  again  that  curvature  of  the  spine  will  re- 
sult from  a  constant  holding  of  the  head  in  any 
but  an  erect  position.  All  the  possible  forms  of 
deviation  from  the  ideal  position  of  the  head 
may  be  found,  but  we  are  concerned  chiefly  with 

36 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

the  effect  of  the  position  of  the  paper  and  the 
slant  of  the  writing  upon  the  head  position. 

On  the  bearing  of  the  position  of  the  paper  and 
of  the  slant  of  the  writing  on  the  position  of  the 
head,  there  has  been  a  great  deal  of  controversy. 
It  has  been  held  on  the  one  hand,  that  any  posi- 
tion of  the  paper  except  one  in  which  the  line  of 
writing  is  parallel  to  the  edge  of  the  desk,  and  any 
deviation  of  the  letters  from  the  vertical,  cause 
bending  and  twisting  of  the  head  and  even  of  the 
body.  Those  who  uphold  this  view  beUeve  that 
there  is  a  strong  tendency  to  bring  the  head  into 
such  a  position  that  the  Une  connecting  the  two 
eyes  is  parallel  to  the  line  of  writing,  so  that  as 
one  looks  along  the  line  the  eyes  move  merely 
in  a  horizontal  and  not  in  an  oblique  direction. 
This  assumption  is  based  on  the  so-called  Wundt- 
Lamansky  law  that  the  eyes  move  most  freely  in 
a  horizontal  or  vertical  direction  and  less  readily 
in  an  oblique  direction. 

Measurements  made  by  other  investigators, 
however,  indicate  that  when  the  line  of  writing 
is  tilted,  the  eyes  are  not  as  a  matter  of  fact 
brought  into  such  a  position  that  the  line  joining 
them  is  parallel  to  the  line  of  writing,  but  that 
this  line  tends  to  be  perpendicular  to  the  main 
downward  strokes  of  the  letters.    This  is  ex- 

37 


27&70i^ 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

plained  as  due  to  a  tendency  to  sight  along  the 
main  strokes  of  the  letters.  The  movement  of 
the  hand  along  the  line  in  writing  and  the  conse- 
quent horizontal  movement  of  the  eyes  are  so 
slow  that  it  is  a  question  whether  the  Wundt- 
Lamansky  law  applies  in  this  case.  Whether  it 
is  due  to  the  tendency  to  sight  along  the  main 
strokes  of  the  letters  or  not,  it  is  a  fact  noted  by 
a  number  of  investigators  that  the  main  strokes 
of  the  letters  take  a  direction  which  is  approxi- 
mately perpendicular  to  the  edge  of  the  desk 
when  the  writer  faces  it  directly.  This  fact  will  be 
referred  to  in  the  discussion  of  slant. 

While  the  theoretical  discussions  of  the  mat- 
ter, then,  are  not  entirely  conclusive^  it  is  clear 
that  the  evidence  is  as  much  against  as  for  the 
argument  for  a  straight  front  position  of  the 
paper  and  vertical  writing  when  that  argument 
implies  that  any  other  position  or  kind  of  writing 
necessarily  causes  an  unhygienic  posture.  The 
measurement  of  the  degree  of  deviation  from 
good  posture  among  children  who  write  vertically 
and  those  who  write  with  a  slant  presents,  if 
we  accept  the  figures  at  their  face  value,  rather 
stronger  evidence  in  favor  of  vertical  writing  and 
the  position  of  the  paper  in  which  the  lower  edge 
is  parallel  to  the  edge  of  the  desk.  One  investiga- 

38 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

tor,  ^  for  example,  found  spinal  curvature  among 
2.1  per  cent  of  1630  vertical  writers  and  3.1  per 
cent  of  1436  who  wrote  with  a  slant. 

A  number  of  considerations  are  to  be  kept  in 
mind  interpreting  these  figures.  In  the  first  place 
the  teachers  of  vertical  writing  undoubtedly 
paid  more  attention  to  the  posture  of  their  pupils 
than  did  the  others,  since  vertical  writing  was 
introduced  with  the  purpose  of  improving  posture 
clearly  in  mind.  In  spite  of  this  fact,  two  inves- 
tigators reported  finding  classes  of  vertical  writ- 
ers whose  posture  was  very  poor,  and  classes  of 
slant  writers  with  entirely  correct  posture.  Fur- 
thermore the  slant  which  was  used  by  these 
pupils  was  presumably  that  used  commonly 
at  that  time  and  place  —  about  1890  in  Ger- 
many. In  the  figures  given  by  one  investigator, 
the  average  angle  of  the  writing  in  two  classes 
was  forty-three  and  fifty-seven  degrees  respec- 
tively, while  the  average  for  a  third  class  was  be- 
tween these  two.  Such  a  degree  of  slant  would 
now  be  considered  excessive,  at  least  in  Ameri- 
can schools,  and  would  rarely  be  found. 

If  we  allow  for  the  difference  in  the  attention 
paid  to  posture  of  the  pupils,  then,  and  for  the  dif- 

^  Cited  in  L.  Burgerstein  and  A.  Netolitzky,  Hatidbuch 
der  Schulhygiene,  Jena,  1895,  G.  Fischer,  p.  273. 

39 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

ference  in  the  amount  of  slant  of  the  writing,  the 
significance  in  these  figures  becomes  small.  Fur- 
thermore, when  the  measurements  for  the  differ- 
ent school  grades  are  taken  separately,  it  appears 
that  the  greatest  difference  in  posture  between 
those  who  write  vertically  and  those  who  write 
with  a  slant  existed  in  the  first  and  second  grades. 
It  is  precisely  in  these  grades  that  the  advantage 
of  a  slant  is  least.  In  the  first  two  or  three  grades, 
then,  considerations  of  posture  have  some  bear- 
ing upon  the  kind  of  writing  to  be  taught,  but  in 
the  other  grades  it  is  of  very  slight  importance. 
A  slight  degree  of  slant  does  not  have  sufficient 
influence  upon  position  to  counterbalance  other 
reasons  for  a  slant.  What  these  reasons  are  we 
shall  see  in  the  next  chapter. 

We  have  been  considering  posture  from  the 
standpoint  of  hygiene.  It  may  not  be  out  of 
place  to  remark  here  that  good  posture  is  of  im- 
portance also  for  its  influence  on  the  writing. 
When  the  body  is  held  erect,  it  forms  a  firm  sup- 
port for  the  arm  and  at  the  same  time  allows  the 
arm  greater  freedom  of  movement  than  when 
the  body  slouches.   This  is  sufficiently  evident. 

Good  posture  is  a  habit  and  one  which  needs  to 
be  built  up  by  constant  drill.  All  the  evidence 
points  to  the  fact  that,  while  the  proper  arrange- 
40 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

ment  of  the  seat  and  desk,  and  the  position  of 
the  paper  on  the  desk  make  a  good  posture  easier 
they  do  not,  of  themselves,  insure  it.  If  bad 
habits  are  once  formed  in  this  respect,  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  break  them,  but  a  Httle  attention  to  the 
matter  in  the  earlier  grades  will  suffice  to  form 
right  habits.  A  necessary  precaution  is  to  avoid 
undue  fatigue  or  restlessness  by  not  requiring  the 
young  child  to  hold  the  same  posture  too  long. 
For  details  regarding  seats  and  desks,  the  reader 
is  referred  to  any  good  book  on  school  hygiene. 

Requirements  of  hygiene  oj  the  eyes 

Besides  posture,  the  teacher  of  writing  is  con- 
cerned with  the  eyes  and  their  hygiene.  It  has 
been  asserted  that  improper  conditions  of  writ- 
ing cause  eye  troubles,  particularly  myopia  or 
short-sightedness. 

Several  requirements  for  the  avoidance  of  in- 
jury to  the  eyes  by  writing  may  be  made.  In  the 
first  place,  the  two  eyes  should  be  at  the  same 
V  distance  from  the  point  to  which  they  are  di- 
rected. This  is  sometimes  not  the  case  when  the 
paper  is  placed  to  one  side.  For  example,  if  the 
paper  is  on  the  right  of  a  middle  line  and  the  head 
faces  directly  forward,  the  writing  is  nearer  to  the 
right  eye  than  to  the  left.  This  condition  is  often 

41 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

avoided  unconsciously  by  the  writer  by  turning 
and  bending  the  head  to  the  right.  This,  of 
course,  introduces  another  faulty  condition.  The 
remedy  is  to  place  the  paper  approximately  in 
front  of  the  writer.  The  left  end  of  the  line  may 
then  be  a  little  to  the  left  of  the  middle  and  the 
right  end  to  the  right.  In  this  case  the  head  may 
turn  a  little  to  the  left  at  the  beginning  of  the 
line  and  to  the  right  side  toward  the  end.  It  is 
only  when  the  position  taken  is  preponderantly 
on  one  side  or  the  other  of  the  straight  position 
that  there  is  danger. 

The  reason  that  harm  results  from  the  unequal 
distance  of  the  writing  from  the  two  eyes  is  that 
Tt, causes  nervous  strain.  The  nerve  centers  which 
control  the  adjustment  of  the  two  eyes  are  so 
intimately  connected  that  the  eyes  instinctively 
converge  and  focus  upon  the  same  point.  If  an 
object  which  is  close  at  hand  is  nearer  to  one  eye 
than  to  the  other,  that  eye  must  have  a  shorter 
focus.  For  distant  vision  this  difference  is  so 
slight  as  to  be  negligible,  but  for  reading  or  writ- 
ing it  is  important.  Considerable  strain  is  put 
upon  the  eyes  in  any  case  to  keep  them  focused 
upon  objects  within  eighteen  inches,  and  when 
conditions  require  that  the  eyes  be  focused  upon 
points  unequally  distant,  the  strain  is  increased. 
42 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

The  second  requirement  is  that  the  strain  inci- 
dent to  constant  near  vision  be  minimized  by  not 
allowing  the  eyes  to  be  held  too  near  the  paper. 
The  distance  will  be  limited,  of  course,  by  the 
size  of  the  child,  the  height  of  the  desk,  etc.  If 
the  child  is  sitting  erect,  if  the  desk  is  at  such  a 
height  that  the  elbow  is  about  three  inches  from 
the  body,  and  if  the  right  forearm  rests  with  most 
of  its  length  upon  the  desk  at  an  angle  of  about 
sixty  degrees  with  the  edge,  the  eyes  will  be  as  far 
from  the  writing  as  good  writing  conditions  per- 
mit. In  the  adult  the  distance  under  these  con- 
ditions is  about  sixteen  to  twenty  inches.  For 
the  child  the  following  distances  may  be  taken 
as  a  minimum  for  the  grades  designated :  primary, 
ten  inches;  intermediate,  twelve  inches;  gram- 
mar, fourteen  inches.  Of  course  it  would  be 
desirable  to  keep  the  writing  at  still  greater  dis- 
tance from  the  eyes,  but  the  size  of  the  child 
places  limits  upon  the  distances  which  are  prac- 
ticable. Those  which  are  given  as  standards  im- 
ply that  the  child  sits  erect. 

Certain  conditions  produce  a  tendency  for  the 
child  not  to  sit  erect,  but  to  lean  forward  and  to 
bring  the  eyes  closer  to  the  paper.  One  of  these 
conditions,  which  has  already  been  referred  to  in 
discussing  posture,  is  the  slope  of  the  desk.  A  desk 

43 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

top  which  is  tilted  through  an  angle  of  at  least 
fifteen  degrees  is  an  important  aid  to  the  main- 
tenance of  good  posture,  at  least  in  the  primary 
grades.  It  is  important  also  that  the  writing  be 
large  enough  for  the  child  to  see  easily  at  the  re- 
quired distance.  A  safe  rule  is  to  require  that  the 
one-space  letters  be  an  eighth  of  an  inch  in  height. 
For  the  primary  grades,  the  requirements  of  the 
movements  make  necessary  larger  letters.  We 
are  here  considering  only  the  requirements  of 
vision. 

Some  investigators  have  found  that  2.1  per 
cent  more  of  those  who  write  with  a  slant  are 
short-sighted  than  of  those  who  write  vertically 
and  that  the  former  hold  the  eyes  from  one  to 
two  inches  closer  to  the  paper  than  do  the  latter. 
The  remarks  which  were  made  on  similar  results 
in  discussing  posture  apply  here  also.  We  do  not 
know  what  the  other  conditions  of  the  writing 
were.  Presumably  the  teachers  of  vertical  writ- 
ing exercised  more  care  about  posture  than  did 
the  others.  We  do  know  that  the  slant  was  ex- 
cessive, and  that  in  many  cases,  at  least,  the 
paper  was  placed  considerably  to  the  right  of  the 
middle  position.  Good  hygienic  conditions  for  the 
eye  can  be  secured  without  resorting  to  vertical 
writing. 

44 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

The  character  of  the  surface  of  the  paper,  the 
sort  of  mark  which  is  made  by  the  pen  or  pencil, 
and  the  arrangement  of  the  Kghting  also  affect 
the  amount  of  eye-strain  incident  to  writing. 
The  paper  should  not  have  a  glazed  surface  — 
that  is,  should  not  reflect  enough  light  to  present 
a  shiny  appearance.  If  a  pencil  is  used,  the  paper 
should  be  rough  enough  to  take  a  good  mark. 
The  pen  or  pencil  mark  should  offer  sufficient 
contrast  to  the  paper  to  be  easily  seen.  The  light 
should  come  from  above  or  from  the  left  and 
should  be  diffused  daylight. 

The  hygiene  of  movement 

Besides  maintaining  correct  posture  and  avoid- 
ing conditions  which  produce  eye-strain,  the 
teacher  of  handwriting  must  consider  the  possi- 
bility of  a  nervous  strain  resulting  from  the  hand 
movement  and  its  conditions.  A  movement 
which  is  not  suited  to  the  child  may  cause  an  un- 
due expenditure  of  nervous  energy  in  the  same 
way  as  improper  conditions  may  cause  eye- 
strain and  consequently  undue  expenditure  o^ 
nervous  energy. 

We  may  begin  with  the  general  question: 
What  sort  of  movement  is  suited  to  the  young 
child,  or  what  changes  in  the  t>^e  of  movement 

45 


THE  TEACHING  OF   HANDWRITING 

take  place  with  the  growth  and  development  of 
the  child?  An  answer  to  these  questions  which 
has  been  widely  accepted,  and  which  has  had  a 
distinct  effect  upon  practice,  is  expressed  in  the 
doctrine  of  fundamental  and  accessory  move- 
ments. This  doctrine  has  been  invoked  as  an 
argument  against  certain  of  the  kindergarten  oc- 
cupations, such  as  threading  beads  and  sewing  or 
any  use  of  the  hands  in  fine  work.  The  child 
should,  it  is  urged,  use  the  large  free  movements 
and  the  muscles  of  the  trunk  and  defer  the  finer 
hand  movements  until  some  time  after  he  enters 
school.  Obviously  this  doctrine  has  a  bearing  on 
writing  and  must  be  examined  more  closely. 

If  we  seek  to  determine  by  a  study  of  the  writ- 
ings on  the  subject  just  what  is  the  distinction 
between  fundamental  and  accessory  movements, 
we  meet  with  a  diversity  of  interpretations.  One 
common  assumption  seems  to  be,  however,  that 
fundamental  movements  are  those  which  are  old 
in  the  history  of  the  race  —  such,  for  example, 
as  walking;  while  accessory  movements  are  those 
which  have  been  acquired  in  more  recent  stages 
of  evolution.  We  may  assume  that  the  older 
movements  are,  to  some  extent  at  least,  instinc- 
tive, while  the  adjustments  more  recently  ac- 
quired have  not  an  instinctive  character,  but 

46 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

must  be  learned  by  each  individual.  If  this  is 
the  interpretation  to  be  made,  it  is  obvious  that 
fundamental  (instinctive)  movements  are  easier 
for  the  child  to  make.  But  this  does  not  solve  the 
problem,  for  it  is  obvious  that  our  task  is  not 
merely  to  allow  instinctive  movements  to  de- 
velop, but  to  teach  the  child  movements  which 
are  not  instinctive;  for  example,  handwriting. 
What  we  wish  to  know,  then,  is  whether  there  is 
any  principle  which  governs  the  order  in  which 
new  combinations  of  movements  may  be  taught 
the  child. 

Our  doctrine  meets  this  problem  by  the  further 
assumptions,  first,  that  fundamental  movements 
are  movements  of  large  muscles,  or  large  move- 
ments, while  accessory  movements  are  move- 
ments of  small  muscles,  or  small  movements; 
and  second,  that  fundamental  movements  are 
central,  that  is,  of  the  trunk  or  toward  the  trunk, 
while  accessory  movements  are  peripheral,  that 
is,  toward  the  extremities.  The  conclusion  from 
these  assumptions  would  be  that  the  child  should 
make  only  or  mainly  movements  of  the  large 
muscles  (or  larger  movements)  and  central  move- 
ments. 

Interpreting  ^'fundamental"  in  these  senses 
we  may  examine  the  validity  of  the  theory  by 
47 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

inquiring  whether  the  child's  instinctive  move- 
ments are  wholly  or  chiefly  fundamental,  or 
whether  his  spontaneous  movements  are  at  first 
fundamental  and  become  only  gradually  acces- 
sory with  his  increasing  age. 

A  study  of  the  matter  will  serve  to  show  that 
many  of  the  child's  early  instinctive  movements 
employ  neither  the  large  nor  the  central  muscles. 
The  earliest  clearly  instinctive  movement  is 
sucking,  which  involves  both  small  and  periph- 
eral muscles.  Another  early  reflex  is  the  clasp- 
ing of  the  hand  about  an  object  touching  the 
palm.  This  also  involves  peripheral  and  relatively 
small  muscles.  Soon  there  appear  instinctive 
movements  of  facial  expression  and  the  adjust- 
ment of  the  eyes,  as  in  following  a  moving  object. 
The  movements  of  the  trunk  in  sitting,  standing, 
and  walking  appear  later  than  all  of  these. 

The  same  is  true  of  the  child's  spontaneous 
movements,  which  are  of  special  significance  in 
this  connection  because  they  are  the  material 
out  of  which  the  new  coordinations  are  formed. 
The  child  certainly  makes  spontaneous  move- 
ments of  the  arms  and  legs  and  vocal  cords  as 
early  as  those  of  the  trunk.  And  in  the  arms  and 
legs  themselves  movements  of  the  extremities  — 
the  fingers  and  toes  and  the  wrists  and  ankles — 

48 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

are  as  prominent  as  the  larger  movements  of  the 
limbs.  The  movements  are  not,  to  be  sure,  co- 
ordinated; but  we  are  not  speaking  of  coordinated 
movements,  for  the  movements  of  the  limbs  as 
a  whole  are  not  coordinated  either.  When  the 
child  begins  to  handle  objects  the  very  term  we 
use  to  describe  the  act  indicates  the  employment 
of  the  hand.  If  the  rattle  is  waved  to  and  fro  by 
the  arm,  it  is  also  grasped  by  the  hand.  When 
the  child  is  excited,  or  is  expressing  an  emotion 
for  which  he  has  no  coordinated  form  of  response, 
he  may  wave  arms  and  legs  aimlessly,  but  much 
of  his  time  is  spent  in  examining  objects  and  hand- 
ling them,  and  in  this  he  uses  the  peripheral 
and  smaller  muscles.  There  is,  then,  no  warrant 
from  the  child's  natural  development  in  contend- 
ing that  we  must  confine  his  activities  to  those 
which  employ  central  or  large  muscles.-^ 

Certain  kinds  of  movements  do,  however,  un- 
doubtedly cause  nervous  strain  and  fatigue  for 
the  child,  and  care  should  be  exercised  that  his 

1  The  fact  that  there  is  somewhat  more  improvement  in 
rapidity  of  movement  and  in  steadiness,  which  was  deter- 
mined by  the  studies  of  Bryan  (Amer.  Jour,  of  Psjxhol.  vol. 
V,  p.  123)  and  Hancock  (Ped.  Sem.  vol.  iii,  p.  9)  is  not  con- 
clusive evidence  of  the  earlier  maturing  of  the  central  muscles 
and  nerve  centers.  The  small  amount  of  difference  may  very 
well  be  accounted  for  by  the  greater  practice  in  the  peripheral 
adjustments. 

49 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

movements  be  suited  to  his  age  and  capacity.  The 
development  of  the  child's  capacity  for  move- 
ment is  not  essentially  different  from  that  of  the 
adult  except  that  in  the  case  of  the  child  there  is 
development  of  general  capacity  as  well  as  de- 
velopment of  abiHty  in  special  forms  of  activity. 

Since  the  development  of  the  child's  general 
capacity  in  movement  cannot  be  adequately 
described  in  terms  of  the  fundamental-accessory 
movement  theory,  we  must  seek  to  define  it  in 
other  terms.  Experimental  evidence  has  clearly 
demonstrated  that  there  is  marked  development 
in  movement  in  a  number  of  respects.  The  stead- 
iness with  which  a  child  of  six  years  can  maintain 
any  position  is  increased  fourfold  by  the  time  he 
reaches  the  period  of  youth.  Precision  of  move- 
ment is  relatively  deficient  in  the  young  child. 
In  speed  of  movement  there  is  an  increase  which 
is  represented  in  tapping  with  the  fingers  by  more 
than  two  a  second.  The  ability  to  make  a  complex 
movement,  such  as  tying  a  knot,  is  noticeably  de- 
ficient in  the  young  child.  The  redeeming  feature 
is  that  the  child's  nervous  system  is  very  plastic 
so  that  he  is  capable  of  readily  learning  new  forms 
of  activity. 

The  precaution  which  is  necessary  to  observe 
is  that  the  child  below  the  age  of  nine  or  ten  be 

50 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

not  required  to  make  movements  which  are  very 
precise,  rapid,  or  complex,  or  which  require  great 
steadiness  of  adjustment.  The  reason  that  periph- 
eral movements  are  often  injurious  is  not  that 
they  are  peripheral,  else  we  should  have  to  pre- 
vent the  child's  using  his  hand,  and  thus  gain- 
ing valuable  training.  The  reason  is  rather  that 
peripheral  movements  are  commonly  more  pre- 
cise than  are  central  movements. 

The  reason  that  it  is  necessary  to  take  pre- 
cautions in  this  matter  is  that  the  adult  often 
does  not  realize  that  a  movement  which  for  him 
is  rough  and  careless  is  for  the  child  precise  and 
careful.  It  is  easy  for  the  adult  to  realize  the 
strain  of  attention  and  fatigue  due  to  making  ad- 
justments which  are  to  him  very  precise,  such  as 
would  be  involved  in  making  a  fine  mechanical 
drawing,  adjusting  the  parts  of  a  watch,  or  doing 
intricate  embroidery.  Yet  the  expert  in  these 
fields  can  work  all  day  without  undue  fatigue. 
The  feat  of  ordinary  writing  which  an  adult  can 
carry  on  for  hours  is  to  the  young  child  a  task 
fatiguing  both  because  of  its  newness,  and  be- 
cause the  degree  of  precision  w^hich  is  required  is 
high  in  relation  to  his  ability. 

Every  possible  means  should  therefore  be 
taken  to  minimize   for  the  child  the  nervous 

51 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

strain  of  writing.  In  the  lower  grades,  the  writing 
period  should  come  at  a  time  when  the  child  is 
not  already  fatigued.  Too  great  precision  should 
not  be  demanded.  The  writing  materials  should 
be  such  as  to  lighten  the  task  and  not  increase 
its  difi&culty.  A  pen  should  not  be  used  at 
all  to  begin  with.  The  hrst  pen  used  should  be 
coarse.  The  penholder  should  be  of  some  ma- 
terial which  can  be  easily  held  in  position,  such 
as  cork  or  soft  rubber,  and  should  be  of  medium 
size.  The  penholder  which  is  used  by  the  child  in 
the  primary  grades  should  be  smaller  that  that 
used  by  older  children.  The  general  rule  is  that 
the  holder  should  not  be  so  small  that  it  cannot 
easily  be  kept  from  turning  in  the  fingers,  nor  so 
large  that  the  fingers  cannot  easily  be  bent  in  a 
natural  manner.  The  surface  of  the  paper  should 
be  hard  enough  so  that  the  pen  does  not  easily 
stick  into  it. 

Writer^ s  cramp 

The  writing  habit  should  be  so  developed  not 
only  as  to  meet  present  demands,  but  also,  if 
possible,  as  to  avoid  future  trouble.  The  same 
provisions  are  necessary  to  meet  both  require- 
ments, but  the  total  effects  of  faulty  methods  are 
not  always  apparent  for  several  years.  The  ex- 
52 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

treme  condition  resulting  from  much  writing  un- 
der bad  conditions  is  writer's  cramp.  Bad  condi- 
tions do  not  necessarily  lead  to  this  extreme,  but 
the  measures  which  have  been  found  efficacious 
to  prevent  or  cure  this  disease  will  also  prove 
serviceable  in  rendering  writing  easier  and  more 
efficient. 

Writer's  cramp  is  a  disease  of  the  nervous  sys- 
tem which  affects  writing  by  producing  either 
the  abnormal  contraction  or  the  paralysis  of  some 
of  the  muscles  used  in  writing.  In  the  most  fre- 
quent case  the  muscles  which  flex  the  fingers  be- 
come cramped  when  the  individual  who  is  suffer- 
ing from  the  malady  tries  to  write .  The  spasm  not 
only  interferes  with  writing,  but  is  very  painful. 
Advanced  cases  of  the  disease  are  rarely  cured. 
A  significant  fact  is  that  the  malady  is  most 
frequently  found  among  professional  penmen  or 
calligraphers.  The  reason  seems  to  be  that  these 
writers  make  exceedingly  precise  and  delicate 
strokes.  Very  rapid  writing  long  continued  also 
brings  on  writer's  cramp. 

While  writer's  cramp  is  an  adult  malady,  it 
must  be  attacked  not  through  curative  but 
through  pn  veitive  measures  —  that  is,  by  train- 
ing the  child  in  correct  habits  of  writing.  The  cen- 
tral point  of  the  whole  matter  is  that  the  condi- 
53 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

tion  which  causes  the  trouble,  and  which  is  to  be 
avoided,  is  too  violent  contraction  of  the  muscles 
by  which  the  pen  is  grasped,  and  by  which 
the  finger  movements  are  made  —  provided  the 
movements  are  made  with  the  fingers.  It  is 
obvious  to  an  observer  of  yoimg  children  when 
they  are  writing  that,  contrary  to  the  theory 
of  fundamental  and  accessory  movements,  they 
contract  too  strongly  the  smaller  muscles  which 
control  the  fingers.  The  diffusion  which  appears 
as  the  child  tries  to  make  a  complex  and  tmaccus- 
tomed  movement  affects  the  Hghter,  more  easily 
contracted  muscles  first.  It  becomes  necessary, 
then,  to  coimteract  this  tendency  to  over-use  by 
laying  emphasis  upon  the  use  of  the  movements 
of  the  arm.  This  measure  of  prevention  and  cor- 
rection was  recommended  by  European  physi- 
cians when  no  practical  form  of  arm  movement 
such  as  is  now  widely  practiced  in  American 
schools  was  known  to  them. 

We  have  already  seen  that  a  rhythmical  writ- 
ing movement  is  a  characteristic  of  mature  writ- 
ing, and  has  a  beneficial  effect  upon  the  writing 
of  children.  A  rhythmical,  steady  movement  has 
also  the  advantage  of  being  much  less  Kable  to 
cause  cramping  than  a  hasty,  irregular  one.  Rhyth- 
mical movements  are  known  to  produce  much 

54. 


PHYSIOLOGY  OF  WRITING 

less  fatigue  than  movements  which  are  irregular. 
The  various  muscles  operate  together  in  a  har- 
monious way,  instead  of  one  pulling  against  the 
other,  and  each  one  gets  into  the  way  of  exerting 
just  the  required  amount  of  force  and  no  more. 
Other  means  of  avoiding  undue  cramping  of 
the  fingers  have  already  been  referred  to.  They 
concern  the  materials  which  are  used  in  writing, 
the  pen,  penholder,  and  paper.  It  is  not  necessary 
further  to  dwell  upon  them  here.  All  these 
measures  have  the  advantage  not  only  of  pre- 
venting a  remote  and  not  very  probable  malady, 
but  they  also  affect  very  beneficially  the  child's 
present  writing  habit. 


IV 

THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

It  has  already  been  pointed  out  that  writing  is  a 
habit  involving  manual  skill.  This  habit  must  be 
developed  in  the  same  manner  as  any  other  such 
habit  through  the  application  of  the  principles 
of  efficient  learning.  The  learning  of  any  such 
habit  is  dependent  upon  two  phases  of  procedure. 
The  first  of  these  is  the  adoption  of  correct  form, 
and  the  second  the  acquirement  of  the  ability  to 
execute  the  movement  efficiently. 

Correct  form  in  the  writing  movement 

The  adoption  of  correct  form  in  the  movement 
must  not  be  confused  with  the  production  of  good 
form  in  the  letters.  Correct  form  in  movement 
refers  to  the  more  evident  outstanding  features 
of  the  movement  which  may  readily  be  observed 
and  copied.  It  may  refer  to  the  positions  which 
are  held  before  the  movement  starts  or  after  it  is 
finished.  It  includes  those  adjustments  which  the 
learner  may  be  shown  or  told  how  to  make  by 
virtue  of  the  fact  that  he  already  possesses  a  cer- 
S6 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

tain  amount  of  general  control  over  his  hands  and 
body.  In  writing,  form  refers  to  such  matters  as 
penholding  and  the  position  of  the  hand,  arm, 
and  body. 

Good  form  is  esteemed  not  only  because  it 
presents  a  better  appearance  than  bad  form,  but 
also  because  it  makes  possible  more  efficient 
action.  It  represents  the  part  of  the  activity  in 
which  the  learner  may  profit  by  the  experience  of 
those  who  have  learned  before  him.  Much  would 
be  learned  by  each  one  for  himself,  but  a  good 
deal  of  any  activity  may  be  taught  and  not  left 
to  the  learner  to  discover  by  chance.  Any  game 
of  skill  will  furnish  illustrations  of  this  point. 
For  example,  in  making  a  stroke  in  golf  it  is  nec- 
essary, in  order  to  insure  accuracy  of  stroke,  that 
the  head  and  body  be  neither  raised  nor  allowed 
to  sway  to  the  side.  This  principle  may  be  easily 
grasped,  and,  by  giving  some  attention  to  the 
matter,  may  be  successfully  appHed. 

Penholdmg 

So  in  the  case  of  writing,  certain  principles  may 
be  laid  down  governing  form.  First,  in  regard 
to  the  manner  of  holding  the  pen.  Teachers  of 
writing  in  the  United  States  are  coming  to  fairly 
close  agreement  as  to  what  constitutes  good  form 

57 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

in  penholding.  The  prescriptions  which  follow 
have  been  reached  in  a  purely  empirical  way, 
without  the  use  of  scientific  experimentation,  but 
in  the  absence  of  such  investigation  we  must  rely 
upon  experience  and  observation  to  guide  our 
practice  on  such  points  of  method  as  these.  The 
orthodox  method  of  holding  the  pen  is  to  grasp 
the  holder  between  the  thumb  and  the  first  two 
fingers  about  an  inch  to  an  inch  and  a  half  from 
the  pen  point.  The  pen  is  held  mainly  between 
the  thumb  and  the  second  finger,  against  which  it 
rests  opposite  the  first  joint.  The  first  finger  rests 
upon  the  top  of  the  pen  and  keeps  it  in  place,  par- 
ticularly in  the  downward  movements.  The  holder 
also  comes  in  contact  with  the  hand  at  the  base 
of  the  index  finger.  All  the  fingers  are  bent  easily, 
each  one  from  the  middle  to  the  little  finger 
being  bent  slightly  more  than  the  one  before  it. 
The  hand  rests  upon  the  two  outside  fingers. 

The  mistakes  which  it  is  most  important  to 
avoid  are  holding  the  fingers  too  straight  so  that 
they  are  inflexible  or  bending  them  too  much  and 
grasping  the  pen  too  tightly.  The  thumb  and  the 
index  finger  particularly  are  apt  to  be  bent  so 
that  the  middle  joints  form  a  sharp  angle.  This, 
besides  leading  to  cramping  and  fatigue,  prevents 
flexibility. 

58 


THE  TEACHING   OF   HANDWRITING 

It  is  not  asserted  that  this  is  the  only  manner 
of  penholding  by  which  legible  and  rapid  writing 
can  be  produced.  Many  hold  the  pen  between 
the  first  and  second  fingers,  and  this  position  has 
the  advantage  that  the  pen  is  held  in  place  with- 
out any  expenditure  of  effort  or  voluntary  mus- 
cular contraction.  Writers  sometimes  assume  this 
position  as  a  relief  from  the  fatigue  caused  by  con- 
tinually making  a  movement  in  the  same  manner. 
The  adoption  of  an  alternative  position  as  a  means 
of  relief  by  one  in  whom  the  writing  habit  is 
mature  does  not,  however,  justify  the  same  pro- 
cedure on  the  part  of  the  child  in  whom  the  habit 
is  in  the  process  of  formation.  It  is  first  necessary 
that  the  habit  of  writing  in  one  particular  man- 
ner be  well  formed  in  order  that  the  action  may 
become  easy  and  mechanical.  The  only  modifi- 
cations which  should  be  made  are  in  the  direction 
of  adapting  the  standard  form  of  movement  to 
the  individual  peculiarities  of  the  child.  Radical 
changes  made  during  the  formative  stages,  un- 
less they  are  imperatively  demanded  by  the  fail- 
ure of  the  present  method,  only  disorganize  the 
movement  and  keep  it  in  consciousness  when  it 
.should  be  becoming  automatic.  Continual  exper- 
imentation with  the  method  of  performing  an  act, 
except  in  the  sense  of  gradual  improvement  in 
59 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

the  details,  has  the  same  effect  upon  progress  as 
pulling  up  a  plant  by  the  roots  has  upon  its 
growth. 

Experimentation  is,  of  course,  necessary  to 
determine  finally  what  the  best  form  is,  but  it 
must  be  made  with  due  deliberation,  by  the 
teacher  or  person  in  authority,  and  in  such  man- 
ner as  not  to  disturb  the  children's  half-formed 
habits.  An  experiment  should  take  a  child  from 
the  beginning  and  carry  him  through  a  consistent 
plan  of  training,  and  not,  as  has  so  often  been  the 
case,  attempt  a  radical  reorganization  of  his  man- 
ner of  writing  three  or  four  times  in  the  course  of 
his  education,  and  leave  him  with  no  well-organ- 
ized habit  at  all. 

Related  to  the  manner  of  holding  the  pen  is  the 
position  of  the  hand.  In  fact,  all  the  elements  of 
position,  movement,  and  posture  are  related  to 
one  another,  and  this  must  be  kept  in  mind  in 
order  to  appreciate  some  of  the  rules  which  are 
laid  down.  The  chief  question  regarding  the 
position  of  the  hand  as  a  whole  is  whether  it 
should  be  allowed  to  turn  over  so  that  it  rests 
upon  the  side,  or  whether  it  should  be  held  in 
such  a  position  that  the  wrist  is  level,  or  nearly 
level.  The  orthodox  rule  of  writing  teacher^  used 
to  be:  keep  the  wrist  level;  and  the  pupil  was 
60 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

often  required  to  keep  a  coin  upon  the  wrist  to 
insure  that  it  did  not  turn  over.  This,  in  its 
extreme,  is  now  pretty  generally  recognized  to 
be  an  artificial  requirement,  and  is  considerably 
relaxed. 

The  requirement  of  a  level  wrist  is  made  in 
order  to  place  the  hand  in  such  a  position  that  it 
can  easily  slide  upon  the  supporting  fingers.  This 
possibility  of  easy  movement  is  necessary  whether 
the  extreme  arm  movement  is  used  or  not.  If  the 
hand  rests  over  on  the  side,  there  is  great  danger 
that  it  shall  remain  stationary,  while  the  fingers 
not  only  form  the  letters,  but  also  produce  the 
forward  movement.  In  this  case  the  hand  be- 
comes cramped  and  the  finger  and  arm  move- 
ments alternate  instead  of  working  together 
simultaneously.  Of  course,  in  order  that  the  arm 
movement  may  be  used  to  form  the  letters,  it  is 
essential  that  the  hand  rest  upon  a  base  which 
permits  it  to  slide  easily  over  the  paper.  If  this 
general  requirement  is  met,  some  latitude  may  be 
allowed  in  the  precise  degree  of  inclination  of  the 
hand.  To  hold  the  hand  so  that  the  wrist  is  level 
requires  a  good  deal  of  muscular  effort  due  to  the 
fact  that  in  this  position  the  two  bones  of  the 
forearm,  the  radius  and  the  ulna,  are  crossed. 
Furthermore,  some  variation  in  the  degree  of 
6i 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

inclination  of  the  hand  is  desirable  in  order  to 
make  possible  the  movement  of  pronation  which, 
as  has  already  been  pointed  out,  is  useful  in  main- 
taining uniformity  of  slant  throughout  the  line. 
If  this  movement  is  used,  the  hand  is  inclined 
to  the  right  more  at  the  beginning  than  at  the 
end  of  the  line.  There  therefore  cannot  be  any 
one  fixed  degree  of  inclination  which  should 
be  maintained. 

Position  of  the  arm 

The  position  of  the  arm  is  closely  related,  in 
some  of  its  aspects,  to  the  slant  of  the  writing  and 
to  the  position  of  the  paper.  The  part  of  the  dis- 
cussion which  deals  with  these  aspects  will  there- 
fore be  deferred  and  treated  in  connection  with 
the  discussion  of  slant.  Other  aspects  of  arm 
position  may  be  treated  here. 

In  the  first  place,  the  arm  should  rest  with 
nearly  the  full  length  of  the  forearm  upon  the 
desk,  w^th  a  possible  exception  to  be  noted  pres- 
ently. This  gives  the  arm  firm  support  upon  the 
muscle  pad  on  the  lower  side  of  the  forearm,  and 
it  is  upon  this  muscle  pad  as  a  sort  of  rolling  base 
that  much  of  the  movement  of  the  arm  is  exe- 
cuted. If  the  forearm  projects  more  than  three  or 
four  inches  over  the  edge  of  the  desk,  the  weight 
62 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

of  the  arm  is  divided  between  the  hand  and  the 
shoulder,  and  the  arm,  in  executing  the  arm  move- 
ments, must  swing  from  the  shoulder. 

This  movement  in  which  the  arm  swings  from 
the  shoulder  has  sometimes  been  used  and  taught. 
For  a  flat-top  desk  which  is  most  frequently  used, 
it  necessitates  either  having  the  desk  very  low,  so 
that  the  forearm  does  not  rest  upon  the  desk 
when  the  arm  hangs  from  the  shoulder ;  or  holding 
the  arm  with  the  elbow  suspended  at  some  dis- 
tance from  the  body.  This  position  is  obviously 
fatiguing,  and  if  the  desk  top  were  low  enough  so 
that  the  arm  would  hang  suspended  above  it,  it 
would  lead  to  the  writer's  bending  low  over  his 
work,  besides  being  much  too  low  for  reading  and 
other  sorts  of  work.  If  a  slanting  desk  is  used,  the 
conditions  are  different.  The  lower  edge  of  the 
desk  may  be  low  enough  to  allow  the  arm  to  hang 
from  the  shoulder  and  yet  the  writing  itself  be  in 
such  a  position  as  to  be  easily  seen  without  bend- 
ing over.  That  such  an  arrangement  is  advanta- 
geous for  children  in  the  primary  grades  will  be 
argued  in  another  place. 

The  position  of  the  left  hand  and  arm  is  also  a 
matter  of  importance.  In  general  terms  the  left 
hand  and  arm  should  be  symmetrically  situated 
to  the  right.   If  the  right  forearm  rests  upon  the 

63 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

desk,  so  should  the  left  arm.  If  the  right  arm 
hangs  from  the  shoulder,  the  left  arm  should 
also.  The  purpose  of  this  rule  is  the  prevention 
of  an  unequal  elevation  of  the  shoulders  with 
consequent  curvature  of  the  spine. 

The  position  of  the  body  has  been  described  in 
sufficient  detail  in  the  chapter  on  hygiene. 

We  have  considered  the  adjustments  which  it 
is  possible  to  conceive  and  make  through  being 
told  and  shown  how.  Some  practice  is,  of  course, 
necessary  to  perfect  the  adjustments,  but  show- 
ing how  is  of  relatively  more  importance  and 
learning  how  of  relatively  less  importance  than 
is  the  case  with  other  aspects  of  the  writing 
coordination.  The  above  described  adjustments, 
we  have  classed  as  form.  We  turn  now  to  the 
other  aspect  in  which  learning  how  is  the  pre- 
dominant means  of  improvement. 

Learning  to  execute  the  movement:  the  trial  and 

success  method 

Certain  positions  which  do  not  involve  com- 
plex adjustment  or  which  are  not  particularly 
novel  can  be  assumed  through  imitation,  but 
a  complex  movement  each  person  must  largely 
learn  for  himself.  The  method  by  which  one 
learns  to  make  complex  motor  adjustments  has 

64 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

been  aptly  called  the  trial  and  success  (or  trial 
and  error)  method.  This  method  may  be  used  in 
other  sorts  of  learning,  but  it  is  in  the  develop- 
ment of  motor  skill  that  it  is  paramount.  No 
extended  description  is  necessary  to  describe  it. 
The  name  is  sufficiently  descriptive.  A  clear  no- 
tion of  its  significance  may  be  gained  by  reverting 
to  Chapter  ii.  We  there  saw  that  the  process 
consists  in  the  gradual  elimination  of  useless 
movements  and  the  organization  of  the  move- 
ments which  are  concerned  in  the  act  into  a  har- 
moniously working  group.  On  the  physiological 
side  this  process  is  due  to  the  estabhshment  of 
connections  between  the  higher  centers  of  the 
brain  (those  which  represent  the  meaning,  the  ap- 
pearance, and  the  sound  of  words,  etc.)  and  the 
centers  for  the  muscles  used  in  writing,  together 
with  connections  between  the  centers  controlling 
the  various  muscles  themselves.  The  formation  of 
these  connections  consists  in  the  establishment  of 
paths  of  low  resistance  to  the  passage  of  the  nerv- 
ous current.  This  leads  to  the  withdrawal  of 
excess  energy  from  other  channels  and  hence  to 
the  elimination  of  other  movements  than  the  ones 
desired. 

Though  the  child  has   to  learn  to  make  the 
writing  movements  through  his  own  efforts,  and 

65 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

through  them  alone,  there  are  certain  conditions 
which  are  under  the  control  of  the  teacher,  and 
certain  points  toward  which  the  teacher  may 
direct  the  attention  of  the  child,  which  make 
progress  more  rapid.  To  these  we  shall  now  turn. 

The  need  of  many  repetitions 

It  is  characteristic  of  all  acts  which  are  learned 
by  the  trial  and  success  method  that  they  cannot 
be  perfected  at  a  stroke.  There  is  no  royal  road 
to  their  acquisition,  but  they  must  be  learned 
through  a  great  number  of  trials  or  repetitions. 
It  is  not  a  question  of  knowing  how  to  perform 
the  movement,  but  rather  of  gaining  the  requi- 
site control  over  the  muscles  by  which  it  is  made 
so  that  when  we  think  of  the  movement  or  of  its 
results  the  appropriate  muscles  will  contract  each 
in  its  proper  time  and  with  the  proper  force. 
Since  we  have  no  means  of  knowing  how  to  make 
a  new  movement  except  as  it  resembles  move- 
ments we  have  learned  before,  or  involves  very 
Simple  combinations  of  movements  over  which 
we  already  have  control,  our  only  means  of  learn- 
ing is  to  try,  and  when  the  trial  movement  suc- 
ceeds, repeat  it  in  the  same  way. 

The  difficulty  which  attaches  to  the  perform- 
ance of  the  desired  movement  and  to  the  repe- 
66 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

tition  of  the  correct  performance  is  due  to  the 
great  variety  of  the  elementary  movements  which 
compose  the  complex  system.  Even  after  the 
constituent  movements  have  been  made  together 
once,  it  is  difficult  to  repeat  the  performance. 
The  new  centers  have  to  become  so  accustomed 
to  working  together  that  they  do  so  smoothly, 
and  that  excess  energy  does  not  overflow  into 
other  channels. 

The  multiplication  of  repetitions  of  a  move- 
ment is  sufficient  to  make  it  easier,  but  in  order 
that  it  shall  increase  in  accuracy  as  quickly  as 
possible,  certain  other  conditions  are  essential. 
Mere  repetition  may  not  produce  improvement 
but  may  rather  serve  to  fix  bad  habits.  In  order 
that  the  repetitions  may  be  of  value  for  improve- 
ment, it  is  necessary  that  the  pupil  give  full  atten- 
tion to  some  phase  of  the  writing  and  strive  to 
bring  it  up  to  some  definite  standard. 

The  necessity  of  attention 

This  principle  that  repetition  must  be  accom- 
panied by  improvement  if  it  is  to  be  of  much 
value  has  several  practical  applications.  The  first 
is  that  the  pupil  must  give  a  high  degree  of  at- 
tention to  his  work. 

As  a  general  rule,  attention  is  necessary  in 
67 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

order  that  improvement  may  take  place.  When 
the  activity  becomes  automatic,  that  is,  when  it 
is  made  without  attention  to  the  process,  the 
mode  of  action  becomes  fixed.  Consciousness  is 
concerned  with  new  adjustments  and  is  necessary 
in  order  that  new  adjustments  may  be  made. 
Whenever  practice  is  for  the  purpose  of  causing 
improvement,  then,  it  must  be  carried  on  while  the 
pupil  is  giving  full  attention  to  what  he  is  doing. 
Some  writers  on  learning  have  held  that  there 
must  be  periods  during  which  there  is  no  improve- 
ment. These  periods  are  called  plateaus,  since 
during  such  periods  the  learning  curve  for  a  time 
remains  level.  There  is  evidence  in  support  of  the 
belief  that,  contrary  to  prevailing  opinion,  pla- 
teaus are  not  essential,  but  are  due  merely  to  the 
fact  that  the  learner  has  at  a  certain  point  failed 
to  keep  his  attention  properly  directed.  Certain 
mental  or  physical  conditions  may  make  it  very 
difficult  to  keep  attention  constant,  but  the  period 
of  marking  time  which  ensues  is  not  to  be  regarded 
as  one  which  is  necessary  in  order  that  further 
adjustments  may  be  made;  but  is,  at  the  best,  a 
period  in  which  adjustments  previously  made  are 
becoming  automatic.  The  new  view,  in  contrast 
to  the  older  one,  is  that  the  older  adjustments 
may  be  made  automatic  at  the  same  time  that 
68 


THE  TEACHING   OF  HANDWRITING 

new  ones  are  being  formed,  so  that  no  break  in 
progress  is  necessary. 

Incentives  to  attention  should  be  chiefly  intrinsic 

For  consistent  progress,  then,  repetitions  must 
be  attentive.  The  attention  of  the  child  to  his 
writing  may  be  gained  through  motives  which 
are  extrinsic  or  intrinsic  to  the  problem  before 
him,  which  is  the  efficient  production  of  written 
forms.  Extrinsic  motives  are,  for  example,  rivalry, 
the  approval  of  the  teacher  or  parent,  or  punish- 
ments and  rewards.  Intrinsic  motives  are  the 
pleasure  in  rhythmic  movement,  the  pleasure  in 
making  pleasing  forms  —  a  form  of  the  construc- 
tive instinct  —  and  the  pleasure  in  overcoming 
difficulties  and  in  raising  one's  past  record. 

It  is  probable  that  we  do  not  sufficiently  rely 
on  the  intrinsic  motives.  When  the  repetition 
becomes  mechanical  and  meaningless,  it  is  natu- 
ral that  the  child  should  lose  interest  and  that 
we  should  appeal  to  outside  motives.  But  if  the 
child  be  kept  continually  conscious  of  the  prob- 
lem before  him  and  of  the  point  at  which  improve- 
ment should  be  made;  if  he  compares  his  work 
more  with  his  own  previous  attainment  than 
with  the  work  of  the  child  who  has  more  aptitude 
than  he,  his  incentive  to  effort  will  be  stronger. 

69 


THE  TEACHING  OF   HANDWRITING 

Extrinsic  motives  also  have  the  disadvantage 
that  they  are  apt  to  lead  to  wrongly  applied 
effort.  While  it  is,  of  course,  evident  that  there 
cannot  be  too  much  concentration  of  the  atten- 
tion, there  may  be  too  much  effort  at  concentra- 
tion. Likewise  there  may  be  too  much  effort 
directed  toward  speed  or  form.  Too  great  effort 
is  apt  to  overreach  itself,  to  disorganize  the  move- 
ment, and  to  cause  a  lapse  in  progress.  This 
seldom  occurs  when  the  learner  is  absorbed  in  the 
process  of  learning,  but  it  often  happens  when  he 
is  conscious  of  losing  interest  and  tries  to  spur 
himself  on  by  external  considerations. 

We  have  found  that  in  order  that  there  may  be 
much  improvement  through  practice  the  child's 
attention  must  be  upon  what  he  is  doing,  and 
he  should  be  thinking  chiefly  of  the  forms 
which  he  is  producing,  and  of  the  improvement 
of  the  forms  or  of  the  movement  by  which  they 
are  produced,  rather  than  of  some  outside  fact  or 
condition  which  acts  as  an  extrinsic  motive.  In 
order  that  his  attention  may  thus  be  on  his  writ- 
ing it  is  necessary  that  the  child  have  some  spe- 
cific difficulty  in  mind  which  he  is  striving  to 
overcome. 

This  means  something  more  than  that  he  is 
trying  to  follow  a  copy.  The  child  can  readily 
70 


THE  TEACHING   OF  HANDWRITING 

see  that  his  writing  departs  widely  from  the  copy ; 
but  his  difficulty  is  to  see  just  in  what  particular 
ways  it  differs,  and  what  he  must  do  to  make  that 
difference  less.  To  this  end  he  must  know  how  to 
analyze  the  faults  of  his  own  writing,  and  must 
have  some  notion  how  to  overcome  them.  He  can 
then  have  some  definite  point  toward  which  to 
direct  his  attention  and  in  reference  to  which  he 
can  note  his  improvement. 

It  is  one  of  the  chief  purposes  of  the  scale 
which  is  described  in  the  last  chapter  to  enable 
the  teacher  to  make  an  analysis  of  the  pupil's 
writing  and  to  help  him  to  make  it  for  himself. 
For  example,  a  very  common  fault  of  writing  and 
one  which  at  the  same  time  has  a  great  deal  to 
do  with  its  legibility  and  is  one  of  the  most  easily 
remedied,  is  bad  spacing.  Good  spacing  may  be 
attained  by  having  a  good  standard  in  mind  and 
giving  some  thought  to  its  attainment.  On  the 
other  hand,  such  faults  as  irregularity  of  slant 
or  of  alinement  must  be  corrected  primarily  by 
the  attainment  of  regularity  of  movement. 

A  detailed  analysis  of  the  faults  which  appear 
in  the  child's  writing  and  of  the  adjustments 
which  are  necessary  to  correct  them  has  been 
worked  out  by  Mr.  W.  C.  Reavis,  Principal  of 
the  Laclede  School,  St.  Louis,  Missouri,  on  the 

71 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 


basis  of  his  experience  in  supervision,  and  is  h^re 
presented  with  his  permission. 


Analysis 

Defect 


Too  much 
slant 


Writing  too 
straight 


Writing  too 
heavy 

Writing  too 
Ught 

Writing  too 
angular 

Writing  too 
irregular 

Spacing  too 
wide 


of  defects  in  writing  and  their  causes,  in 
use  by  Principal  Reavis 

Cause 
Writing  arm  too  near  body. 
Thumb  too  stiff. 
Point  of  nib  too  far  from  fingers. 
Paper  in  wrong  position. 
Stroke  in  wrong  direction. 
Arm  too  far  from  body. 
Finger^  too  near  nib. 
Index  finger  alone  guiding  pen. 
Incorrect  position  of  paper. 
Index  finger  pressing  too  heavily. 
Using  wrong  pen. 
Penholder  of  too  small  diameter. 
Pen  held  too  obliquely  or  too  straight. 
Eyelet  of  pen  turned  to  side. 
Penholder  of  too  large  diameter. 
Thumb  too  stiff. 
Penholder  too  lightly  held. 
Movement  too  slow. 
Lack  of  freedom  of  movement. 
Movements  of  hand  too  slow. 
Pen  gripping. 

Incorrect  or  uncomfortable  position. 
Pen  progresses  too  fast  to  right. 
Too  much  lateral  movement. 


3. 

4. 

pi 

(i: 


In  order  to  intensify  the  child's  interest  in  his 
progress  in  overcoming  the  difficulties  of  writing, 
a  definite  yrecord  should  be  kept  of  his  progre^. 
72 


THE  TEACHING   OF   HANDWRITING 

This  may  be  done  by  giving  grades  based  on  a 
writing  scale  supplemented  by  specimens  of  his 
writing  which  are  taken  and  preserved  at  regular 
intervals.  This  is  a  much  more  stimulating  and 
encouraging  record  for  those  pupils  at  least  who 
have  rather  less  than  the  average  ability  than  is 
the  common  method  of  comparing  the  various 
members  of  the  class  with  one  another.  This 
procedure  assumes  that  all  pupils  have  equal 
ability  in  the  subject  in  question,  and  that  their 
standing  depends  upon  their  industry  only  —  a 
false  and  pernicious  assumption.  In  such  a  sub- 
ject as  handwriting,  in  which  a  definite  record  of 
attainment  can  be  kept,  the  pupil's  achievement 
should  chiefly  be  compared  with  his  own  past 
achievement  rather  than  with  that  of  others. 

Length  and  frequency  of  periods  of  practice 

In  order  that  the  child's  attention  may  be  upon 
his  task  it  is  not  only  necessary  that  he  have  the 
right  mental  attitude  toward  his  work  and  the 
proper  motives  to  pursue  it.  His  physical  condi- 
tion has  an  important  effect  upon  his  atten- 
tion and  upon  the  speed  with  which  he  learns. 
We  are  concerned  here  with  his  physical  condi- 
tion only  so  far  as  it  is  affected  by  the  work  itself. 
When  a  person  practices  a  new  activity  contin- 

73 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

uously  for  a  certain  period  of  time  the  amount  of 
benefit  he  derives  from  the  practice  becomes  less 
after  a  certain  length  of  time  and  finally  disap- 
pears altogether.  This  diminution  in  the  rate  of 
improvement  may  be  attributed  to  fatigue  and 
the  consequent  wandering  of  the  attention. 

Fatigue  appears  especially  early  when  new  ac- 
tivities are  being  learned  and  varies  also  with  the 
age  and  individuality  of  the  learner.  A  number 
of  experiments  have  been  performed  to  ascertain 
the  best  length  of  period  in  different  kinds  of 
learning.  In  general  these  experiments  have 
shown  that  in  learning  of  a  mechanical  sort  the 
same  amount  of  time  cut  up  into  short  periods 
of  practice  produces  more  rapid  progress  than 
when  divided  into  longer  periods.  It  may  safely 
be  said  that  in  the  first  five  grades  frequent  pe- 
riods of  ten  minutes  each  will  give  better  results 
than  periods  of  greater  length  held  less  frequently. 
It  is  probably  never  advantageous,  at  least  in  the 
elementary  school,  to  extend  the  practice  period 
beyond  twenty  minutes. 

Imitation  of  a  person  writing  better  than  imitation 
of  a  copy  merely 

It  has  been  said  that  the  child  should  be  stim- 
ulated to  improvement  not  merely  by  setting  a 

74 


THE  TEACHING   OF  HANDWRITING 

:opy  before  him,  but  also  by  leading  him  to  make 
an  analysis  of  his  own  writing.  This  raises  the 
whole  question  of  the  place  of  imitation  in  learn- 
ing to  write.  Two  kinds  of  imitation  may  be  em- 
ployed :  the  imitation  of  a  finished  product  or  speci- 
men of  writing,  and  the  imitation  of  a  person  who 
is  going  through  the  process  of  writing.  The  first 
kind  of  imitation  is  employed  when  the  copy-book 
or  copy  slips  are  used.  The  writer  has  pointed 
out  in  another  place  that  the  trend  of  modem 
practice  is  decidedly  away  from  a  reliance  upon 
the  copy-book  as  the  chief  means  of  teaching.^ 

This  trend  in  the  teaching  of  penmanship  is  analo- 
gous to  the  change  which  took  place  in  the  teaching 
of  drawing  in  the  latter  part  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury, and  the  basis  for  the  change  is  very  much  the 
same  in  the  one  case  as  in  the  other.  The  arguments 
for  and  against  copy-books  may  briefly  be  stated. 
The  copy-book  is  regarded  as  of  advantage  in  teach- 
ing writing,  first,  because  it  presents  to  the  child  what 
is  regarded  as  a  perfect  model  for  him  to  imitate. 
The  belief  is  that  the  more  perfect  the  model  which 
is  set  before  the  child  the  closer  will  be  his  approxima- 
tion to  it. 

There  are  several  fallacies,  however,  in  this  posi- 
tion.   In  the  first  place,  the  engraved  model  is  the 

1  "Current  Methods  of  teaching  Handwriting,"  Elementary 
School  Teacher,  1912,  vol.  xii,  p.  429. 

75 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

lifeless  result  of  writing  and  not  the  process  of  writ- 
ing itself.  The  child  can  very  much  better  imitate 
the  process  of  performing  an  act  than  the  result  of 
the  act  after  it  has  been  completed.  Therefore,  the 
sight  of  a  teacher  writing  presents  to  the  child  in  a 
very  much  clearer  form  the  process  of  WTiting  which 
he  has  to  develop.  The  whole  emphasis  of  present- 
day  teaching  is  upon  the  development  of  the  move- 
ment by  which  the  child  produces  letters  and  not 
upon  the  result  as  divorced  from  the  movement. 
Again,  the  copy  which  is  presented  in  the  copy-book 
is  not  ordinarily  a  possible  form  of  writing.  It  is 
not  produced  by  writing  in  the  ordinary  way,  and 
it  does  not,  therefore,  suggest  the  kind  of  writing 
which  we  wish  to  develop,  but  suggests  rather  the 
slow  dramng  process  by  which  it  itself  was  actually 
produced.  An  ideal  which  is  impossible  of  attain- 
ment by  the  method  which  is  to  be  used  is  a  false 
ideal,  and  has  no  advantage  above  a  more  imper- 
fect product  which  was  produced  by  the  ordinary 
writing  method. 

It  may  be  said  in  reply  to  this  argument  that  the 
teacher  is  ordinarily  not  capable  of  setting  up  a  good 
enough  model  for  the  child.  If  this  is  the  case,  how- 
ever, the  teacher  is  not  fit  to  teach  the  child  properly 
even  with  the  aid  of  a  copy-book.  In  every  form  of 
teaching  which  involves  skill  or  dexterity  imitation 
is  one  of  the  best  means  of  training,  and  it  is  clearly 
recognized  that  a  person  who  can  not  perform  the 
act  himself  is  not  quaHfied  to  teach  another  to  do  it. 

76 


THE  TEACHING   OF   HANDWRITING 

To  set  up  as  a  model  the  finished  result  is  nowhere 
else  regarded  as  a  satisfactory  method  of  teaching  the 
process.  It  should  no  more  be  regarded  as  satisfactory 
in  the  teaching  of  handwriting.  The  remedy  for  poor 
writing  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  then  is  not  the  sub- 
stitution of  the  finished  product  in  a  copy-book,  but 
is  rather  an  acquisition  of  skill  on  the  part  of  the 
teacher.  This  is  no  unreasonable  demand  of  any  per- 
son who  possesses  the  average  degree  of  manual  skill. 

We  must  then  give  up  the  notion  that  writing 
can  be  taught  in  a  mechanical  way  merely  by 
setting  before  the  child  models  for  him  to  copy 
and  providing  for  him  a  space  which  he  is  to  fill. 
In  the  subject  of  writing,  as  in  the  other  subjects 
of  the  curriculum,  we  are  coming  to  recognize  that 
the  function  of  the  teacher  is  to  guide  the  learning 
process  of  the  pupil  and  not  merely  to  set  tasks 
and  hear  lessons.  Each  child  has  his  own  prob- 
lems which  are  more  or  less  individual  and  these 
require  the  guidance  of  a  living  intelligent  teacher 
rather  than  a  mere  lifeless  model. 

The  special  methods  adapted  to  different  grades 

The  adaptation  of  the  character  of  the  teach- 
ing to  the  needs  and  ability  of  the  pupil  has  an- 
other aspect  in  the  variations  in  method  and 
content  which  are  necessary  in  order  to  make 

77 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

them  suitable  to  the  children  of  different  ages. 
Failure  to  make  this  adaptation  adequately  has 
been  characteristic  not  merely  of  copy-book 
systems,  but  also  of  methods  which  lay  stress 
upon  movement  drill.  More  progressive  systems 
of  both  kinds  are  now,  however,  making  modifi- 
cations of  one  sort  or  another  to  suit  the  different 
grades.  In  the  case  of  the  copy-books  the  main 
changes  which  are  introduced  are  the  use  of  large 
coarse  writing  in  the  copy  for  the  lower  grades 
and  the  introduction  of  pictures  and  of  text 
which  is  interesting  to  the  child.  The  chief  mod- 
ification in  movement-drill  methods  is  to  defer 
anything  like  exacting  drill  until  the  third  or 
fourth  grade.  Some  of  the  most  widely  used  sys- 
tems, however,  have  not  yet  made  such  obviously 
rational  concessions  to  the  demands  of  child 
nature.  The  adaptations  which  are  necessary  to 
meet  these  demands  we  may  consider  in  further 
detail. 

Handwriting  in  the  primary  grades 

When  the  beginner  may  he  taught.  Some  writers 
have  advocated  deferring  all  writing  until  the 
third  or  fourth  grades  on  the  ground  that  the 
writing  activity  is  too  exacting  upon  the  nervous 
system  of  the  primary  child  because  it  requires 

78 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

finely  adjusted  movements  and  general  immo- 
bility of  body.  On  the  other  hand,  the  widely 
exploited  Montessori  method  has  as  one  of  its 
most  prominent  features  the  instruction  in  writ- 
ing of  children  of  kindergarten  age. 

The  views  of  those  who  would  defer  writing  are 
not  without  reason,  but  the  objections  upon  which 
they  are  founded  can  be  met  without  such  radical 
changes  as  are  demanded.  The  Montessori  method 
attempts  to  meet  these  objections  by  introducing 
the  child  to  writing  by  a  series  of  steps  which  are 
<^so  well  graded  that  he  enters  upon  each  succeeding 
step  without  great  difficulty  or  nervous  exhaus- 
tion. The  chief  distinctive  feature  of  this  method 
is  training  in  the  perception  of  form  by  handling 
objects  of  various  geometrical  form,  by  using  the 
pencil  in  filling  in  spaces,  and  by  tracing  with  the 
fingers  letters  cut  out  of  sandpaper,  before  any 
attempt  is  made  to  write.  The  child  thus  becomes 
familiar  with  the  general  shape  of  the  letters  by 
the  direct  processes  of  touch  and  movement  be- 
fore he  undertakes  the  rather  difiicult  specialized 
activity  of  producing  them  with  a  pen  or  pencil. 

Some  such  exercises  preliminary  to  writing 
itself  are  doubtless  of  value.  When  the  child  be- 
gins writing  proper,  however,  the  problem  is  not 
ended.   At  this  point  the  Montessori  method 

79 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

leaves  us.  It  is  apparent  from  the  appearance  of 
the  children  who  learn  by  that  method  —  accord- 
ing to  the  writer's  observation  of  photographs 
taken  in  Rome  —  that  the  children  often  exhibit 
a  cramping  of  the  hand  from  which  those  who  are 
taught  by  the  best  methods  in  the  United  States 
are  free. 

His  writing  should  he  very  large.  The  writing  of 
the  beginner  should  have  two  characteristics.  It 
should  be  very  large,  and  it  should  be  done  with 
the  arm  as  a  whole  rather  than  with  the  fingers. 
These  two  prescriptions  are  related  and  their 
reasons  are  fairly  obvious.  In  the  chapter  on 
*' Physiology  and  Hygiene"  it  was  pointed  out 
that  the  child  is  capable  of  much  less  precise 
movements  than  is  the  adult,  and  that  there  is 
a  steady  progress  in  precision  of  movement  with 
age.  Now  it  is  clear  that  a  large  letter  can  be 
made  with  much  less  precision  than  a  small  one 
without  producing  any  greater  departure  from 
the  -true  form  of  the  letter.  The  same  amount 
of  deviation  forms  a  much  smaller  proportion 
of  the  whole.  This  conclusion  is  confirmed  by 
the  universal  experience  that  it  is  easier  to 
write  in  good  form  on  the  blackboard  than  upon 
paper. 

He  should  write  with  the  arm  as  a  whole.  The 
80 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

second  requirement  follows  from  the  first.  If  the 
child  writes  with  the  fingers  his  writing  is  almost 
sure  to  be  comparatively  small  —  in  the  natural 
trend  smaller  than  the  adult's  —  because  the  range 
of  movement  of  his  fingers  is  less. 

The  movement  in  which  the  arm  as  a  whole  is 
most  readily  employed,  as  distinguished  from  the 
fingers,  is  the  so-called  whole-arm  movement 
which  is  made  without  resting  the  forearm  on  the 
desk.  In  order  that  this  movement  may  be  prop- 
erly carried  out  the  desk  top  should  have  a  slant 
of  at  least  fifteen  or  twenty  degrees,  as  has  already 
been  said.  Under  these  conditions  the  front  edge 
of  the  desk  will  be  low  enough  so  that  the  child's 
elbow  will  clear  it  when  the  arm  hangs  from 
the  shoulder.  The  movement  cannot  be  properly 
made  with  a  flat-top  desk  at  such  a  height  that 
the  elbow  must  be  held  up  at  a  distance  from  the 
body.  This  position  is  fatiguing  and  results  in 
the  formation  of  a  habit  which  is  difficult  to  break 
up  in  the  higher  grades. 

When  the  conditions  make  it  impossible  for  the 
child  to  make  the  whole-arm  movement  properly, 
the  next  best  procedure  is  to  use  the  arm  move- 
ment with  rest  and  require  the  child  to  write  as 
large  as  his  arm  will  permit.  It  will  be  possible 
to  obtain  writing  in  which  the  one-space  letters 
8i 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

are  nearly  one-half  inch  in  height  if  pains  are 
taken  to  develop  flexibility  of  movement. 

Besides  being  less  precise  this  type  of  writing 
has  other  advantages.  When  the  child  begins  to 
write,  as  was  said  in  a  previous  chapter,  there  is  a 
good  deal  of  diffusion  of  the  nervous  impulse.  The 
muscles  of  the  fingers,  being  the  more  easily  con- 
tracted, are  affected  by  this  diffused  impulse 
more  than  are  the  larger  muscles  at  the  shoulder. 
In  fact  the  fingers  become  over-contracted,  as 
observation  of  children  writing  reveals.  To  avoid 
this  over-contraction  it  is  necessary  to  encourage 
the  use  of  the  arm  as  a  whole. 

Appropriate  standards  of  size,  speed,  and  accuracy. 
These  two  requirements  of  size  and  arm  move- 
ment are  met  in  highest  degree  by  blackboard 
writing,  and  accordingly  this  has  been  found  to 
be  the  best  form  with  which  to  begin.  When  the 
child  begins  to  write  on  paper  after  several  months 
of  blackboard  writing,  he  should  use  rough-sur- 
iaced  paper,  large,  smooth  pencil  or  crayon,  and 
should  continue  to  write  large.  For  a  time  the 
one-spaced  letters  may  be  one  half  inch  high. 
The  height  may  be  gradually  reduced  until  in  the 
third  grade  the  child  is  using  letters  about  half  as 
high.  If  ruled  paper  is  used,  the  lines  should  be  an 
inch  and  a  half  apart  to  start  with,  about  an  inch 
82 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

apart  in  the  low  third  grade,  and  so  on.  Not  until 
the  upper  grades  at  least  should  lines  as  close  as 
three  eighths  of  an  inch  be  used,  if  then.  A  very 
common  fault  in  writing,  which  reduces  its  legi- 
bility greatly,  is  the  crowding  together  of  the 
lines.  Since  school  pupils  commonly  use  ruled 
paper  this  fault  must  be  ascribed  in  the  main  to 
the  closeness  of  the  ruling.  The  only  considera- 
tion favoring  crowding  the  lines  is  economy  in 
paper,  and  this  is  not  of  sufficient  importance  to 
outweigh  the  importance  of  legibility. 

The  requirement  as  to  speed.  As  the  require- 
ments on  the  score  of  accuracy  should  be  less 
severe  than  those  imposed  upon  the  older  pupil, 
so  also  should  he  be  required  to  write  less  rapidly. 
Not  only  is  he  less  capable  of  rapid  movement  in 
general,  as  all  experiments  have  shown,  but  he  is 
less  adept  in  this  particularly  difficult  and  com- 
plex movement.  This  is  not  always  recognized. 
The  worst  delinquents  in  this  regard  are  some  of 
those  who  emphasize  arm-movement  drill.  They 
sometimes  make  no  distinction  at  all  between  the 
speed  required  of  the  different  grades,  and  the 
resulting  scrawls  cannot  be  justified  on  any  score. 
The  child  should  write  slowly  enough  to  enable 
him  to  make  the  letters  with  some  semblance  of 
their  true  form  and  with  some  regularity.  Certain 
83 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

sorts  of  irregularity  are  natural  in  his  condition 
of  undeveloped  control,  but  they  should  not  be 
exaggerated  by  undue  haste. 

In  a  study  of  the  rate  of  movement  of  children 
in  the  grades  it  was  found  that  children  of  differ- 
ent ages  differed  widely  in  their  abihty  to  make 
up  and  down  strokes  rapidly.^  The  median 
grammer-grade  child  made  about  twice  as  many 
strokes  per  minute  as  the  median  first-grade  child. 
Not  over  one  hundred  double  strokes  can  be  ex- 
pected of  the  first-grade  child,  while  about  two 
hundred  can  be  made  by  the  upper-grade  child. 
The  speed  of  writing  letters  does  not  increase  as 
rapidly  as  the  speed  of  making  simple  strokes, 
since  the  more  rapid  writer,  as  was  shown  in  a 
previous  chapter,  spends  a  larger  proportion  of 
his  time  on  the  complex  parts  of  the  letters.  The 
difference  is  sufficiently  great,  however,  to  jus- 
tify making  much  greater  demands  in  the  matter 
of  speed  of  the  mature  than  of  the  immature 
writer. 

We  should  not,  then,  expect  either  a  high  de- 
gree of  accuracy  or  a  high  speed  of  the  beginner. 
On  the  other  hand,  the  child  should  write  with 
sufficient  fluency  so  that  the  successive  stages  of 

^  "Current  Methods  of  teaching  Handwriting,"  Elementary 
School  Teacher,  1912,  vol.  xiii,  p.  32. 

84 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

the  movement  are  fused  together  into  a  whole 
complex  movement.  If  the  movement  is  slowed 
down  beyond  a  certain  point  it  ceases  to  be  a 
single  movement  and  becomes  a  succession  of 
movements.  In  the  earlier  stages,  to  be  sure,  it 
must  be  slow  enough  so  that  the  eye  may  be  used 
to  guide  it  and  keep  it  from  going  too  far  astray, 
for  we  have  found  that  the  child  exercises  greater 
visual  control  than  the  skilled  writer;  but  this 
control  should  be  used  only  to  modify  the  direc- 
tion of  the  movement  in  course,  and,  not  to  stop 
it  entirely  and  start  it  in  a  new  direction.  Only  if 
the  movement  is  continuous  can  improvement  be 
made  in  the  ability  to  produce  fluently  a  form  the 
image  of  which  is  in  the  mind.  The  learner  must 
come  to  know  what  it  feels  Hke  to  make  the  move- 
ment needed  to  produce  the  form,  and  this  he 
acquires  only  when  the  movement  can  be  expe- 
rienced as  a  whole. 

The  standards  of  speed  and  accuracy  must  ad- 
vance together.  On  the  side  of  form  also  a  certain 
minimum  of  excellence  must  be  maintained  in 
order  that  practice  may  be  of  profit.  The  mere 
making  of  movements  which  have  the  outward 
semblance  of  writing  is  of  little  if  any  value.  The 
child  is  not  by  this  process  acquiring  an  image  of 
the  form  of  the  letter,  for  it  must  not  be  forgotten 

85 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

that  the  image  is  only  perfected  by  the  actual 
carrying-out  of  the  idea  into  action.  The  order 
is  not  first  a  concept,  then  its  reproduction; 
but  first  a  vague,  very  imperfect  notion,  which  is 
refined  and  perfected  by  the  attempt  to  reahze  it 
in  action.  The  writing  activity  plays  an  important 
part  in  the  acquisition  of  the  idea  of  the  form 
of  the  letters.  The  pupil  by  writing  carelessly  is 
therefore  only  acquiring  slovenly  ideas  which  he 
will  later  have  to  displace.  In  writing,  then,  as 
in  other  forms  of  skill,  the  standard  in  speed  and 
accuracy  must  advance  together.  The  demand 
for  either  the  speed  or  the  accuracy  of  the  expert 
in  the  beginner  is  founded  on  wrong  educational 
principles.  Whether  the  learner  progresses  with 
equal  rapidity  in  both  forms  of  excellence  in  the 
different  stages  of  his  learning,  or  what  the  pre- 
cise relation  of  the  two  should  be,  has  not  been 
determined. 

It  is  not  the  place  here  to  give  in  detail  a  series 
of  exercises  or  lessons  to  be  used  in  teaching 
writing.  Such  plans  may  be  found  in  the  various 
published  manuals  and  exercise  books.  We  may 
merely  lay  down  certain  principles  which  should 
underlie  the  detailed  course  of  procedure,  and 
from  these  the  individual  teacher  may  work  out 
her  own  course  or  may  select  in  the  light  of  these 
86 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

principles  details  of  procedure  from  the  various 
published  courses  or  systems. 

Writing  should  have  meaning  to  the  child  from 
the  beginning.  From  the  beginning  writing  should 
have  meaning  to  the  child  and  should  be  con- 
nected with  his  reading  and  other  language  activ- 
ities. Not  much  detailed  analysis  of  letter  forms 
should  be  made  nor  should  perfection  of  form  be 
demanded.  The  old  method  of  requiring  the  child 
to  make  first  the  simple  letter  elements  or  *' prin- 
ciples/' and  then  leading  him  out  of  these  to  build 
up  letters  and  words,  starts  at  the  wrong  end.  A 
few  elementary  movement  drills,  such  as  the 
straight  line  and  direct  and  reversed  ovals,  may 
be  practiced  for  the  purpose  of  gaining  control 
and  freedom  of  action;  and  the  appropriate 
letters  may  be  made  in  connection  with  these 
drills.  But  such  drills  should  be  incidental  to 
actual  writing  and  not  preliminary  to  it.  The 
order  of  procedure  is  to  choose  some  simple  word 
which  is  already  of  significance  to  the  child,  write 
it  for  him  on  the  board,  have  him  attempt  to 
copy  the  word  through  imitating  the  action,  and 
finally  lead  him  to  the  criticism  of  his  product 
and  to  the  practice  which  will  produce  improve- 
ment. 

The  words  and  sentences  should  present  progress* 

87 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

he  difficulties.  For  a  considerable  time  the  writing 
lesson  is  the  only  time  when  the  child  writes.  Its 
chief  purpose  is  to  give  the  teacher  opportunity 
to  guide  the  child's  early  efforts  to  write.  In  order 
to  make  the  task  progressive  in  difficulty,  words 
may  be  chosen  in  such  an  order  as  to  include  first 
easy  letters  and  letter  combinations  and  then 
successively  harder  ones.  For  example  the  word 
"see"  is  one  which  is  likely  to  occur  in  the  child's 
reading  and  is  well  fitted  because  of  its  simplicity 
as  a  beginning  word.  The  one-spaced  letters  are 
in  general  suited  for  the  first  work,  followed  by  the 
two-  or  more-spaced  letters  and  the  capitals.  The 
classification  of  the  letters  in  Fig.  8,  page  107, 
may  serve  as  a  suggestion  of  the  general  order  of 
the  letters,  but  no  such  classification  can  be 
strictly  followed,  and  the  difficulty  of  the  con- 
nection between  letters  as  well  as  of  the  letters 
themselves  must  be  studied.  Furthermore  the 
simpler  two-  and  three-spaced  letters  may  be 
used  before  all  the  one-spaced  letters  have  been 
written  and  the  easier  capitals  before  the  harder 
small  letters.  Following  the  principle  that  writ- 
ing should  have  meaning,  sentences  must  be  used 
early  and  this  involves  the  use  of  capitals. 

The  value  of  formal  drill.  A  word  may  be  said 
regarding  the  value  of  formal  drill  preliminary 
88 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

to  writing  for  the  purpose  of  leading  to  some  de- 
gree of  movement  control  and  for  developing  gen- 
eral acquaintance  with  the  forms  of  the  letters. 
Such  drills  have  been  made  familiar  in  the  Mon- 
tessori  method.  The  chief  value  of  such  methods 
is  that  they  give  the  child  the  motor  experience 
which  corresponds  to  letter  forms.  That  is,  in 
such  an  act  as  tracing  over  the  sandpaper  letters 
with  his  finger  he  finds  out  how  it  feels  to  make 
the  movement,  and  this  feeling  of  the  move- 
ment gives  him  the  cue  which  enables  him  to 
make  it  again.  The  sandpaper  merely  acts  as  a 
motive  to  move  in  the  proper  direction.  It  sup- 
plements the  sight  motive  by  the  touch  motive. 
The  other  preliminary  exercises  of  the  Montes- 
sori  system,  as  drawing  and  filling  in  outlines, 
serve  the  purpose  of  giving  the  child  practice  in 
handling  the  pencil.  The  aspect  of  the  method  by 
which  the  child  is  enabled  to  write  words  spon- 
taneously and  to  spell  out  new  words  is  based 
upon  the  phonetic  drill  which  the  child  undergoes 
in  putting  together  cardboard  letters  and  is  made 
possible  in  large  measure  by  the  phonetic  charac- 
ter of  the  Italian  language. 

Individuals  vary  in  capacity  and  needs.  In 
teaching  primary  writing  especially,  attention  to 
the  capacity  and  needs  of  the  individual  pupil  is 

89 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

necessary.  Some  pupils  can  write  from  the  start 
with  Httle  difficulty.  Others  need  constant  guid- 
ance and  help. 

What  may  be  required  by  the  end  of  the  third 
year.  By  the  end  of  the  third  grade  the  child  should 
have  become  somewhat  accustomed  to  the  use  of 
the  pen;  he  should  be  able  to  write  a  large  hand, 
making  well-formed  letters  with  a  fair  degree  of 
fluency,  say  fifty  letters  a  minute ;  and  should  have 
made  a  beginning  in  the  use  of  writing  as  a  means 
of  expression  of  his  thought.  He  has  had  lessons 
in  writing,  but  they  have  been  occupied  mainly  in 
supervision  of  his  general  position  and  mode  of 
carryiQg  on  the  movement,  and  in  some  analysis 
of  letter  forms,  and  have  included  little  formal 
drill.  During  these  first  years,  as  indeed  during 
the  whole  of  his  school  career,  the  character  of 
the  writing  in  all  the  work  in  the  school  should  be 
carefully  supervised. 

Handwriting  in  the  intermediate  grades 

WTien  he  passes  to  the  fourth  grade  the  child  is 
coming  into  possession  of  a  considerably  higher 
degree  of  motor  control.  Moreover,  he  can  be- 
come interested  in  perfecting  his  control  through 
well-directed  drill.  This  drill,  as  has  been  said, 
must  not  be  mechanical,  but  if  the  child  can  be 
90 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

made  to  see  his  progress  he  will  be  interested. 
The  habit  of  movement  which  is  to  be  the  perma* 
nent  one  should  now  be  learned  if  it  has  not  been 
acquired  previously.  A  judicious  use  of  move- 
ment exercises  may  now  be  made.  To  a  consider- 
ation of  the  best  forms  of  movement  and  of  move- 
ment exercises  we  next  turn. 

The  best  type  of  movement.  The  various  forms 
of  movement  which  are  commonly  used  in  writ- 
ing may  be  best  described  by  the  terms  ^'free- 
arm  movement,"  *'arm  movement  with  rest," 
*' finger  movement,"  and  "combined  arm  and  fin- 
ger movement."  Some  writers  employ  still  an- 
other movement  —  that  of  the  wrist.  This  is  made 
by  an  alternate  flexion  and  extension  of  the  wrist 
with  the  hand  turned  over  on  the  outside,  and  is  to 
be  distinguished  from  the  side-to-side  movement 
which  may  be  made  to  carry  the  hand  along  from 
letter  to  letter.  The  wrist  movement  is  rather 
common  among  Europeans  and  serves  to  make 
the  writing  freer  than  when  an  extreme  form  of 
finger  movement  is  used,  but  the  necessity  which 
it  entails  of  turning  the  hand  over  on  the  side 
impairs  the  free  progress  of  the  hand  along  the 
line.  We  may  therefore  dismiss  it  from  our  con- 
sideration. 

Of  the  four  other  forms  of  movement  or  of 

91 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

movement  combinations  which  are  mentioned 
above,  the  free  arm  movement  has  already  been 
advocated  as  suitable  for  the  coarse,  free  writing 
of  the  first  three  grades.  Now,  however,  the 
child's  writing  must  become  smaller  and  more 
accurate.  It  is  much  easier  to  make  an  accurate 
movement  when  the  arm  and  hand  are  supported, 
and  as  the  child  attains  greater  maturity  and 
motor  control  there  is  not  so  much  danger  that 
the  fingers  will  be  excessively  cramped  through 
diffusion  of  the  nervous  impulse.  Hence  some 
form  of  movement  with  the  arm  resting  on  the 
desk  should  now  be  adopted. 

The  practical  issue  is  between  the  arm  move- 
ment with  rest  and  the  combined  finger  and  arm 
movement.  The  combined  movement  as  distin- 
guished from  the  extreme  finger  movement  in- 
cludes a  free  side-to-side  movement  of  the  hand 
and  arm  along  the  line  while  the  fingers  form  the 
letters,  and,  it  may  be,  in  addition,  a  slight  up- 
ward and  downward  oscillation  of  the  arm  as  the 
letters  are  being  formed.  In  the  extreme  forms 
of  the  arm  m^ovement  the  arm  does  the  whole 
work,  including  the  formation  of  the  details  of 
the  letters. 

The  difference  here  indicated  between  the  arm 
movement  with  rest  and  the  combined  movement 
92 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

is  not  great  or  very  important.  If  a  strict  adher- 
ence to  the  demand  for  the  entire  exclusion  of  the 
movements  of  the  fingers  is  maintained,  consid- 
erable drill  will  be  required  beyond  that  amount 
necessary  to  form  the  habit  of  a  satisfactory  com- 
bined movement.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  amount 
of  drill  given  in  the  elementary  school  does  not 
suffice  to  produce  this  result  in  the  majority  of 
the  children. 

The  arm  movement  with  rest  —  the  so-called 
muscular  ^novement  —  is  an  American  discovery 
and  has  been  vigorously  exploited  in  commercial 
schools  since  the  last  quarter  of  the  last  century 
and  more  recently  in  certain  systems  of  teaching 
in  the  public  schools.  It  seems  likely  that  within 
twenty-five  years  this  form  of  writing  will  be 
practically  universal  in  American  schools.  The 
chief  advantages  of  the  movement  are  two.  In 
the  first  place,  it  is  made  with  the  fingers  rela- 
tively relaxed,  thus  avoiding  cramping.  In  the 
second  place,  the  rolling  movement  of  the  arm 
upon  the  muscle  pad  of  the  forearm  produces  a 
firmness  and  evenness  of  line,  and  the  fact  that 
the  movement  is  produced  from  a  center  at  a 
considerable  distance  from  the  pen  point  results 
in  regularity  of  slant. 

The  survival  of  this  type  of  movement  may 

93 


THE  TEACHING  OF   HANDWRITING 

depend  upon  a  discriminating  view  of  its  merits 
and  defects  upon  the  part  of  its  advocates.  If  it 
is  made  to  do  more  than  its  fair  share  of  work  or 
if  its  merits  are  insisted  on  with  too  uncritical 
enthusiasm,  opportunity  will  be  given  those  who 
may  find  profit  in  picking  flaws  in  it  and  in  lead- 
ing to  a  reaction  to  a  different  kind  of  movement. 
The  use  of  the  movement  by  beginners,  in  the 
writer's  opinion,  furnishes  such  ground  of  attack. 
Another  ground  is  the  over-emphasis  of  move- 
ment drill  to  the  neglect  of  an  analysis  of  the 
form  of  the  letters.  Finally,  the  contention  that 
every  detail  of  the  letters  shall  be  made  by  the 
movement  of  the  arm  while  the  fingers  remain 
immobile  is  calculated  to  antagonize  reasonable 
critics.  The  oscillation  of  the  arm  may  well  form 
the  main  basis  for  the  upward  and  downward 
strokes  of  the  letters,  but  to  require  that  every 
loop  and  turn  and  joining  be  produced  by  the 
movement  of  the  arm  as  a  whole,  instead  of  the 
much  more  flexible  hand  and  fingers,  is  to  set  up 
an  artificial  requirement  and  one  which  is  not 
made  in  regard  to  other  types  of  skilled  move- 
ment. 

The  form  of  movement,  then,  which  best  meets 
the  requirements  which  may  be  laid  down  as  the 
result  of  experiment  and  of  practical  experience 
94 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

is  somewhat  as  follows :  The  hand  and  arm  must 
be  so  adjusted  that  the  hand  progresses  freely 
along  the  line  during  the  formation  of  the  letters 
and  in  the  spaces  between  words.  The  hand  must 
rest  upon  some  freely  sliding  point  or  points  of 
contact  such  as  the  finger  nails  or  the  side  of 
the  little  finger.  When,  on  the  contrary,  the  pen 
point  is  carried  along  from  one  letter  to  another 
by  means  of  adjustments  of  the  parts  of  the 
fingers  and  the  hand,  the  hand  continually  gets 
into  a  cramped  position. 

The  movements  of  the  arm  and  fingers  should 
form  a  smooth  and  easy  coordination  in  which 
there  is  a  condition  of  flexibility  in  the  whole 
member.  The  rotation  of  the  arm  upon  the  muscle 
pad  of  the  forearm  as  a  center  carries  the  hand 
along,  the  upward  and  downward  oscillatory 
movement  forms  the  groundwork  of  the  letter 
formation,  and  slight  adjustments  of  the  fingers 
complete  the  details  of  the  letters.  In  addition  to 
these  chief  elements  of  the  movement  the  wrist 
may  rotate  to  the  side  to  supplement  the  sideward 
movement  of  the  arm,  and  the  forearm  may  re- 
volve upon  its  axis  in  the  movement  of  pronation 
as  a  corrective  to  the  increase  in  slant  at  the  end 
of  the  line.  There  is  no  good  reason  for  seeking  to 
eliminate  any  of  these  component  movements. 

95 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

Each  has  some  part  to  play.  Moreover,  room 
must  be  left  for  individual  differences  in  their 
relative  prominence  and  manner  of  combina- 
tion. 

Position  of  the  paper  and  of  the  arm,  and  slant. 
In  the  early  part  of  the  chapter  the  question  of 
the  position  of  the  paper  and  of  the  arm  in  rela- 
tion to  it  was  deferred,  since  these  matters  related 
to  the  type  of  movement  which  is  used.  Con- 
nected with  them  also  is  the  problem  of  slant,  so 
that  all  these  questions  should  be  considered 
together. 

In  the  chapter  upon  the  "Physiology  and 
Hygiene  of  Writing,"  the  bearing  of  the  position 
of  the  paper  and  of  the  slant  of  the  writing  upon 
the  health  of  the  child  was  discussed.  The  situa- 
tion in  brief  is  this.  In  the  last  quarter  of  the 
last  century  a  number  of  physicians,  particu- 
larly in  France  and  Germany,  found  that  the 
mode  of  writing  then  in  vogue  produced  spinal 
curvature  and  eye-strain.  The  position  com- 
monly assumed  in  writing  was  the  side  position 
with  the  right  arm  on  the  desk  and  the  left 
arm  off;  and  an  extreme  slant  was  commonly 
used.  In  correcting  posture  it  was  believed  that 
the  slant  of  writing  must  be  done  away  with. 
That  this  does  not  follow  appears  from   the 

96 


THE  TEACHING  •F  HANDWRITING 

considerations  presented  in  the  former  chapter. 
We  may  now  consider  what  principles  should 
govern  slant  and  the  position  of  the  arm  and 
paper. 

The  fundamental  considerations  which  govern 
the  slant  which  should  be  adopted  are  those  of 
movement.  There  has  been  extensive  contro- 
versy over  the  question  whether  a  straight  front 
position  of  the  paper  (resulting  in  vertical  writ- 
ing) or  a  tilted  position  conforms  better  to  the 
eye  movements.  The  evidence  for  the  tilted  posi- 
tion is  as  convincing  as  that  for  the  straight  posi- 
tion, and  the  question  must  therefore  be  settled 
on  other  grounds. 

Two  general  features  of  the  writing  movement 
determine  the  answer  to  the  problem.  In  the 
hrst  place,  the  arm  and  the  paper  must  be  in  such 
relation  that  the  rotation  of  the  forearm  about 
the  elbow  as  a  center  carries  the  hand  along  the 
line  of  writing.  This  means  that  the  paper  must 
be  tilted  to  the  left  until  the  line  of  writing  is 
about  at  right  angles  to  the  forearm.  The  second 
principle  is  that  the  most  natural  direction  of  the 
upward  and  downward  strokes  of  the  writing  is 
toward  the  body  —  or  about  at  right  angles  to 
the  edge  of  the  desk.  This  makes  the  writing 
deviate  from  the  vertical  by  the  same  angle  that 
97 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 


the  paper  is  tilted.   The  relationships  are  illus- 
'•mted  in  Fig.  3. 

The  other  argument  besides  that  based  on  hy- 
giene is  to  the  effect  that  vertical  writing  is  more 
legible  than  slanting  writing.  When  the  writing 

conforms  to  the 
standard  form 
this  is  true.  But 
the  difference  is 
not  great,  even 
if  it  does  so  con- 
form, and  when 
it  does  not,  as 
is  often  the  case, 
vertical  writing 
may  become  as 
illegible  as  slant- 
ing writing.  The 
superior  legibil- 
ity of  vertical 
writing  lies  part- 
ly at  least  in  the 
sharp  contrast 
between  the  direction  of  the  vertical  strokes  and 
the  connecting  strokes,  which  results  in  the  sharp 
marking-off  of  the  letters  from  one  another.  In 
rapid  writing  the  various  strokes  tend  to  be 

98 


Figure  3 

Diagram  of  the  relation  of  the  body  and 
arms  to  the  desk  and  the  paper. 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

made  in  the  same  direction,  whether  vertical  or 
slanting.  When  this  happens  vertical  writing 
may  become  very  illegible,  as  may  be  observed  in 
Fig.  4. 

This*  tendency  for  the  succeeding  strokes  to 
have  the  same  direction  constitutes  another 
reason  why,  from  the  point  of  view  of  movement, 

Figure  4 

Specimen  of  vertical  writing  showing  assimilation  of  the  upward  to 

the  downward  strokes  in  direction. 

writing  has  usually  had  and  should  have  a  slant. 
The  connecting  strokes  having  a  slant,  the  other 
up-and-down  strokes  are  naturally  influenced  in 
the  same  direction. 

No  fixed  rule  as  to  the  degree  of  slant  which  is 
best  can  be  given.  In  general,  extreme  slant  is 
unnecessary  to  satisfy  the  requirements  of  move- 
ment. A  slant  of  not  more  than  thirty  degrees 
from  the  vertical  therefore  is  to  be  recommended. 

Movement  drill.   The  elaboration  of  the  tech- 

99 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

nique  of  any  act  of  skill  usually  implies  some 
degree  of  formal  drill  for  the  purpose  of  its  ac- 
quirement. When  the  individual  is  performing 
the  act  in  its  practical  setting,  his  attention  is 
largely  taken  up  by  the  result  which  he  is  to 
attain  and  he  loses  sight  of  the  adjustment  and  of 
its  improvement.  It  is  true  that  the  child  proba- 
bly falls  into  a  new  adjustment  more  readily  than 
does  an  adult,  particularly  if  he  can  imitate  a 
skilled  performer.  But  in  the  case  of  a  difficult 
and  complex  act  such  as  handwriting  some  formal 
drill  hastens  progress  and  produces  greater  skill. 
A  large  number  of  forms  of  movement  drill 
have  been  devised.  Certain  drills  are  used  pretty 
universally  and  the  differences  which  exist  are 
chiefly  in  matters  of  detail.  We  may  distinguish 
in  general  two  types  of  drill,  one  which  is  purely 
formal,  and  the  other  which  is  used  in  connec- 
tion with  the  actual  production  of  letters.  Of  the 
purely  formal  drills  the  most  frequently  used  are 
the  retraced  oval  in  both  directions,  the  straight 
up-and-down  stroke,  and  the  retraced  horizontal 
stroke.  The  continuous,  progressive  oval  may  be 
looked  upon  as  a  modification  of  the  retraced 
oval.  Somewhat  less  frequently  used  forms  of 
drill  are  the  continuous  m  stroke,  u  stroke,  and 
/  stroke  (see  Fig.  5).  The  aim  of  these  drills  is 
100 


1^ 


7  /'^ ':'  'V 


Thii  exercise       « 
was  done  with  the   //    10 
Forearm  Movement  A  {\ 


Kotice  the  smooth  lines. 


The   right  *.^/0 
circle  (i?)   with{\S  /^ 
the  Forearm  Movement.  +h 
The  "X"  indicates  the  starting  point. 

Figure  $ 

Illustrations  of  formal  drills.  From  Elementary  School  Teach^. 
I9I2,  vol.  xm,  page  28.  (Reproduced  with  the  permission  of  the 
University  of  Chicago  Press.) 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

evidently  to  give  the  pupil  practice  in  the  use  of 
the  arm  movement  in  the  production  of  the 
letters. 

Another  type  of  drill  is  particularly  directed 
toward  the  development  of  the  arm  component 
in  carr3dng  the  hand  along  the  line  while  the 
letters  may  be  produced  by  the  finger  and  the 
hand.  This  type  of  drill  has  been  particularly 
developed  in  the  Bennett  method   (see  Fig.  6). 

LATERAL    WALKING     HOVEUOIT 


Figure  6 

Dlustrations  of  the  lateral  movement  drills  as  used  in  the  Bennett 
system.  Reduced  to  one-half  size.  From  Elementary  School  Teacher, 
1912,  vol.  xiri,  page  29.  (Reproduced  with  the  permission  of  the 
University  of  Chicago  Press.) 


This  method,  in  fact,  excludes  entirely  the  oval 

and  up-and-down  drills.   The  drills  which  are 

102 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

included  in  this  method  are  the  back-and-forth 
horizontal  stroke,  the  so-called  swinging  and 
rocking  stroke,  and  the  development  of  the  i  and 
the  n  out  of  a  combination  of  these  strokes  with 
an  intervening  downward  stroke.  This  forward- 
and-backward  movement  is  used  even  in  the 
development  of  the  letters  themselves,  as  well  as 
in  the  movement  between  the  letters.  Thus  a  is 
produced  by  a  combination  of  the  rocking  and 
swinging  movement  with  the  downward  move- 
ment following.  This  same  lateral  movement  is 
emphasized  in  certain  drills  used  by  Houston, 
Berry,  and  others  (see  Fig.  7).  These  drills  con- 
sist in  a  succession  of  letters  which  are  connected 
by  strokes  an  inch  or  more  long.  In  such  a  drill  it 
is  necessary  to  combine  smoothly  the  movement 
which  produces  the  letters  and  the  movement 
which  carries  the  hand  across  the  page.  Since 
this  touches  upon  the  essential  problem  in  the 
development  of  the  writing  coordination,  the 
writer  believes  that  such  drills  are  of  the  highest 
importance.  The  oval  and  the  straight  up-and- 
down  stroke  are  useful  to  develop  an  easy,  flowing 
movement. 

Only  the  commonly  used  formal  drills  have 
been  here  referred  to,  since  more  labored  forms 
are  a  matter  for  individual  choice.  A  great  many 

103 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

drills  which  consist  in  retracing  letter  forms  or 
incorporating^to^e  formation  of  the  letter  one 
of  the  formal  drills,  have  been  devised.  These 
may  be  useful  in  compelling  the  pupil  to  use  a 


— 

r) 

« 

^7Z 



— 

— 

-0- 

— 

— 

■n^ 

y 

^ 



^ 

<7- 

7^ 

/. 

O^ 

^ 

-V- 

>^ 

y 

1 

Figure  7 

Illustrations  of  exercises  with  laterally  spaced  letters.  From  Hous- 
ton's Copy  Slips  for  Grade  III.  From  Elementary  School  Teacher ^ 
1912,  vol.  XIII,  page  30.  (Reproduced  with  the  permission  of  the 
University  of  Chicago  Press.) 

free  movement  in  the  production  of  the  letter, 
but  are  of  less  importance  than  the  more  formal 
drills. 
Rhythm  and  counting.  A  very  important  aspect 
104 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

of  the  teaching  of  movement  drills,  and  in  fact  of 
the  best  form  of  movement  in  writing  itself,  is 
rhythm.  Experimental  investigations  have  shown 
that  one  of  the  main  differences  between  the 
writing  of  the  child  and  of  the  adult  is  that  the 
latter  is  very  much  more  characterized  by  rhythm 
than  the  former.  That  is,  the  adult  tends  to 
write  in  time  as  though  to  music.  The  successive 
strokes,  though  very  different  in  length,  tend  to 
approximate  each  other  in  time.  It  has  also  been 
shown  that  the  use  of  an  imposed  rhythm,  that  is, 
the  requirem*enf1|||at  the  child  write  according  to 
a  certain  rhythm,  tends  to  unify  his  writing  and 
render  it  more  mature  in  character. 

The  count  is  usually  made  upon  the  down  stroke 
of  the  letter,  though  at  least  one  "ai^thod  gives  the 
count  on  the  sideward  or  connecting  stroke.  The 
important  thing  is  that  regularity  and  (^^|jinuity 
be  introduced  into  the  movement.  The  time  is 
usually  marked  by  counting,  making  a  series  of 
raps  with  a  ruler,  handclaps,  or  metronome  jDeats. 
A  still  better  method  of  indicating  tempo,  which 
has  long  been  used  for  marching,  dancing,  gym- 
nastic exercises,  etc.,  is  music.  This  adds  still 
more  to  the  pleasure  of  rhythmic  movement. 

The  rate  of  count  should  be  regulacted  accord- 
ing to  the  age  and  degree  of  progress  of  the  pupils. 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

The  rate  of  two  hundred  double  strokes  a  min- 
ute which  is  commonly  used  is  too  rapid  for  those 
who  are  beginning  movement  drill,  but  may  be 
perhaps  attained  at  the  end  of  a  year's  practice. 

Care  should  be  taken  to  see  that  the  pupils  are 
actually  following  the  rhythm.  Some  pupils  have 
little  sense  of  rhythm  and  a  few  may  perhaps  have 
to  be  left  to  go  their  own  pace. 

Letter  groups  on  the  basis  of  movement.  An 
intermediate  step  between  purely  formal  drill  and 
writing  is  drill  in  the  writing  of  certain  classes  of 
letters  in  connection  with  the  formal  drill  with 
which  they  are  most  closely  related.  Thus  cer- 
tain letters,  as  the  capitals  0,  C,  A,  G,  D,  and  E, 
are  made  by  the  direct  oval  movement  with 
slight  variations.  For  the  purpose  of  this  drill  on 
letters  they  may  with  advantage  be  classified  and 
those  which  are  made  with  similar  movement 
practiced  in  connection  with  the  corresponding 
formal  movement  drill.  The  accompanying  fig- 
ure illustrates  the  most  complete  classification 
made  on  this  basis  with  which  the  writer  is 
familiar. 

In  this  system  the  small  letters  are  divided  into 

six  groups,  as  follows  (see  Fig.  8) :  first,  i,  u,  and 

w,  which  are  based  upon  the  direct  oval;  second, 

j^,  m,  V,  and  x,  which  are  based  upon  the  reverse 

io6 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

oval;  third,  a,  e,  o,  and  c,  which  are  also  based 
upon  the  direct  oval,  but  are  regarded  as  more 
complex  than  the  first  group;  fourth,  r  and  5, 

3  t:^  ^^y OL Q^ 

ZJi^J  Jl  PG/3 

Figure  8 

Classification  and  order  of  development  of  letters  in  the  Economy 
System.  From  Elementary  School  Teacher,  1912,  vol.  xii,  page  484. 
(Reproduced  with  the  permission  of  the  University  of  Chicago  Press.) 

which  are  miscellaneous  letters;  fifth,  /,  d,  p,  and 
q,  which  have  in  common  the  straight  up-and- 
down  line;  and  sixth,  /,  b,  h,  k,j,  g,  y,  z,  and 
/  which  have  the  upper  or  the  lower  loop  in 
107 


^7  7 


^ 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

common.  The  first  and  third  groups  might  very 
well  be  placed  together,  since  they  are  based  upon 
the  same  type  of  movement.  This,  of  course,  is  not 
the  only  possible  classification.  For  example,  a, 
d,  q,  and  g  might  be  classed  together  on  the  basis 
of  the  similar  movement  which  is  used  in  making 
the  parts  which  are  common  between  these 
letters.  Similarly,  n,m,p,  and  h  might  be  grouped 
together.  The  purpose  of  any  such  classification 
is  not  to  make  the  grouping  rigid,  but  to  classify 
the  letters  for  a  particular  purpose,  that  is,  to 
secure  systematic  and  consecutive  practice.  In 
the  course  of  the  development  similarities  which 
are  not  represented  in  the  main  classification 
may  very  well  be  brought  out  and  made  the  sub- 
ject of  drill.  Some  such  classification  as  is  here 
suggested  is  to  be  highly  recommended  for  the 
purpose  of  introducing  system  and  consecutive- 
ness  to  the  drill. 

The  capital  letters  may  also  be  grouped  ac- 
cording to  the  similarity  of  the  movement  by 
which  they  are  written.  The  classification  will 
depend  to  some  extent  upon  the  type  of  letters 
which  are  chosen,  but  the  broad  lines  of  grouping 
may  be  illustrated  again  from  the  Economy  Sys- 
tem. The  first  group,  which  is  based  upon  the 
direct  oval,  is  composed  of  0,  C,  ^4,  G,  Z),  and  E, 
io8 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

The  second  group,  which  is  related  to  the  reverse 
oval,  is  composed  of  H,  K,  M,  N,  V,  U,  W,  Q,  X, 
F,  Z,  /,  /,  P,  B,  and  R.  The  third  group  is  com- 
posed of  the  complex  letters  T,  F,  5,  and  L. 

Organization  of  exercises.  This  system  of  classifi- 
cation suggests  the  order  of  exercises  suited  to 
develop  the  letters  in  connection  with  their  ap- 
propriate movement  drills.  The  objection  to  an 
analytic  type  of  procedure  does  not  hold  here  as 
in  the  case  of  the  first  grade.  The  fourth-grade 
pupil  knows  how  to  write  in  order  to  express  his 
thoughts  and  now  merely  needs  drill  in  technique* 
to  develop  the  movement  control  which  will  en- 
able him  to  write  rapidly  and  accurately.  We 
may  therefore  begin  with  formal  movement 
drills  —  the  repetition  of  the  straight  up-and- 
down  stroke  or  the  direct  oval,  for  example  — 
then  develop  the  simple  letters  which  are  based 
on  these  drills  and  their  combinations  into  words, 
and  so  on. 

Practice  on  each  of  the  several  important  types 
of  movement  drill  shown  in  Fig.  5,  page  loi,  with 
the  appropriate  small  letters,  may  occupy  several 
exercises.  After  the  various  drills  have  been  gone 
through  and  reviewed  they  may  form  the  intro- 
duction to  each  succeeding  lesson.  The  capital 
letters  may  then  be  gone  through  in  the  same 
109 


THE  TEACHING  OF   HANDWRITING 

way.  Then  practice  may  be  given  in  forms  of 
drill  which  exercise  the  lateral  movement  of  the 
arm,  such  as  those  illustrated  from  Bennett  or 
from  Houston.  While  drill  is  being  given  upon 
the  various  classes  of  small  and  capital  letters, 
various  appropriate  combinations  of  letters  in 
words  may  be  practiced.  When  the  alphabets 
have  been  gone  through  once  a  greater  propor- 
tion of  the  drill  may  be  upon  words  and  sentences 
so  as  to  include  a  great  variety  of  letter  combi- 
nations. It  may  be  of  value  to  give  especial  at- 
tention to  frequently  occurring  combinations,  as 
Hon  and  ing.  The  digits  should  also  be  prac- 
ticed. 

Another  matter  which  should  be  given  atten- 
tion is  the  arrangement  of  the  writing  on  the 
page.  Spacing  between  letters,  words,  and  lines, 
paragraphing,  margins  at  the  top,  bottom,  and 
sides  should  all  be  discussed  and  illustrated. 

During  this  progress  through  the  various  kinds 
of  movement  drill  some  attention  may  be  given 
to  the  form  of  the  letters,  but  this  feature  of  writ- 
ing is  bound  to  suffer  for  a  time  while  the  new 
type  of  adjustment  is  being  learned.  After  the 
course  as  outlined  above  has  been  gone  through 
the  drill  should  be  continued,  giving  more  at- 
tention to  the  detection  and  correction  of  errors. 
no 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

The  causes  of  the  errors  made  by  each  pupil 
should  be  discussed  and  removed,  and  a  record 
of  progress  in  speed  and  in  the  various  charac- 
teristics represented  in  the  writing  chart  to 
be  described  in  the  last  chapter,  should  be 
kept. 

The  relation  to  be  maintained  between  the 
speed  of  writing  and  its  legibility  or  excellence  of 
form  may  vary  with  the  stage  of  advancement 
of  the  pupil.  In  practice  it  varies  also  between 
pupils  in  the  same  stage  of  advancement  in  differ- 
ent schools  or  school  systems.^  Thus,  for  ex- 
ample, in  the  fourth  grade  of  one  school  the  speed 
was  found  to  be  60  letters  a  minute  and  the  legi- 
bihty  (on  the  Ayers  Scale)  50,  while  in  the  same 
grade  of  another  school  the  speed  was  S;^  and  the 
legibility  42.5. 

Style  of  alphabet.  A  relatively  unimportant 
matter,  but  one  which  sometimes  arouses  ques- 
tion, is  the  style  of  alphabet  which  is  to  be  used 
as  a  model  for  imitation.  A  simple  form  of  script 
which  is  not  extreme  in  any  respect  is  the  best. 
The  letters  should  not  be  ornamented  with 
flourishes  or  unduly  simplified  by  leaving  off 

^  See  an  article  by  the  author  entitled  "Some  Practical 
Studies  of  Handwriting,"  Elementary  School  Teacher,  1913, 
vol.  XIV,  pp.  167-179. 

Ill 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING   , 

connecting  strokes.  Flourishes  require  time  with- 
out increasing  beauty  and  legibility.  Elimination 
of  connecting  strokes  decreases  fluency.  Again, 
too  round  a  hand  probably  reduces  speed,  while 
too  angular  a  hand  reduces  legibility.  To  go 
much  further  than  this  and  prevent  all  individual 
choice  by  prescribing  the  exact  form  of  every 
stroke  is  pedantry.  The  most  important  require- 
ment of  letters  is  that  they  be  clearly  distin- 
guishable from  each  other.  Deviations  in  the 
form  of  a  letter,  then,  which  destroy  its  distinc- 
tive form  are  to  be  discouraged.  Others  may  be 
permitted. 

The  characteristics  of  the  specific  writing  in- 
struction which  marks  the  introduction  of  in- 
tensive writing  drill  in  the  intermediate  grades 
have  been  discussed.  The  course  outlined  will 
occupy  perhaps  a  year.  The  succeeding  year  or 
two  should  be  occupied  in  the  fixing  of  the  habits 
which  have  been  built  up  by  repetition  with  va- 
riation to  suit  the  needs  of  particular  classes  or 
individuals.  Three  years  of  such  drill  should  be 
enough,  in  the  judgment  of  the  writer,  to  pro- 
duce a  well-developed  habit,  provided  the  work 
has  been  consistent  and  has  not  been  preceded 
by  the  formation  of  cramped  finger  movement 
writing  in  the  early  grades. 

112 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

Handwriting  in  the  grammar  grades 

The  task  in  the  grammar  grades,  then,  is  to  pre- 
vent the  pupil  from  falling  into  bad  habits,  grad- 
ually to  increase  the  efSciency  of  his  habit,  and 
to  complete  the  automatization  of  the  habit. 

Prevent  the  pupil  from  falling  into  bad  habits. 
Bad  habits  of  various  sorts  may  be  fallen  into, 
and  some  attention  is  required  to  prevent  their 
formation.  For  example,  habits  of  bad  posture 
may  be  contracted,  due  in  many  cases  to  writing 
without  sufficient  room  on  the  desk.  Or  writing 
may  become  over-hasty.  Or  the  proper  relation 
between  the  arm  and  the  paper  may  not  be  kept. 
Or  excessive  finger  movement  may  be  used.  The 
habit  once  being  formed  does  not  guarantee  that 
it  may  not  be  broken  down,  due  to  the  stress  of 
unfavorable  conditions. 

Increase  the  efficiency  of  his  habit.  In  the  second 
place,  writing  should  be  carried  to  a  higher  point 
of  efficiency  than  is  usually  attained  in  the  fifth* 
or  sixth  grade,  particularly  in  the  matter  of  speed. 
The  pupils  at  least  who  go  on  into  the  high 
school  —  and  an  increasing  number  are  doing  so 
—  should  be  able  to  write  easily  and  legibly  one 
hundred  letters  a  minute.  Otherwise  under  the 
stress  of  note  taking,  theme  writing,  and  writing 

113 


THE  TEACHING   OF  HANDWRITING 

in  tests  and  examinations  they  either  will  be  at  a 
serious  disadvantage  on  account  of  their  slowness 
or  in  their  haste  will  disorganize  their  writing 
habit. 

Make  it  completely  automatic.  In  the  third 
place,  the  writing  habit  should  in  these  grades 
become  as  completely  automatic  as  possible. 
That  is,  the  child's  attention  should  not  need  to 
be  given  to  his  writing  movement  or  to  the  de- 
tails of  the  letters  except  in  so  far  as  is  necessary 
to  see  that  they  do  not  deteriorate,  but  should  be 
free  to  be  occupied  with  the  thought  which  is  be- 
ing expressed. 

Avoid  continual  experimenting  with  the  style  of 
writing.  A  great  obstacle  to  the  automatization 
of  the  writing  habit  is  the  practice  of  continually 
experimenting  with  it  —  not  allowing  it  to  settle 
down  to  a  fixed  mode  of  action.  This  does  not 
mean  that  there  should  not  be  improvement,  but 
that  there  should  not  be  a  radical  shifting  of  the 
style  of  writing  in  any  respect.  Such  shifting  may 
be  brought  about  by  imitating  the  style  of  a  new 
teacher,  by  a  wave  of  fashion  among  the  pupils 
throughout  a  school,  or  by  an  administrative 
change  in  method  in  a  school  system.  As  a  mat- 
ter of  general  principle  such  an  administrative 
change  should  never  be  made  to  apply  to  the 
114 


THE  TEACHING   OF   HANDWRITING 

grades  above  the  fifth  and  ordinarily  not  in  the 
fiifth  grade. 

Use  one  style  in  both  writing  lesson  and  other 
school  work.  Another  obstacle  to  automatization 
is  the  use  of  two  or  more  styles  of  writing  under 
different  conditions.  The  pupil  often  uses  one 
style  for  the  writing  lesson  and  another  for  the 
rest  of  his  school  work.  This  is  probably  due  in 
large  measure  to  the  lack  of  responsibility  of  the 
regular  teacher  for  writing  and  to  her  lack  of 
competence  to  supervise  it.  This  is  a  very  un- 
fortunate situation  and  it  is  a  question  whether 
it  does  not  counterbalance  the  advantage  of  hav- 
ing skilled  special  writing  teachers.  Each  pupil 
should  possess  a  style  of  writing  which  is  neither 
careless  nor  too  precise,  neither  too  fast  nor  too 
slow,  and  which  can  be  used  without  substantial 
variation  in  all  his  work. 

The  method  of  meeting  these  demands.  How 
may  these  demands  be  met  in  the  upper  grades? 
By  occasional  review  drills  and  by  holding  the 
pupils  definitely  up  to  a  standard  in  all  their 
writing.  Once  a  week  is  probably  often  enough 
for  the  drills  which,  by  the  way,  could  very  ad- 
vantageously be  continued  in  the  high  school.  A 
writing  test  could  be  given  at  the  end  of  each 
drill  period  upon  which  the  pupil  could  be  graded. 

115 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

Part  of  the  penmanship  grade,  however,  should 
be  based  on  the  pupil's  written  work  in  other 
subjects.  Some  exercise  might  be  chosen  each 
week,  at  random  and  without  the  pupil's  knowl- 
edge which  was  to  be  selected,  and  the  writing 
graded.  This  grade,  of  course,  could  be  based 
only  on  form  or  quahty,  while  in  the  writing  test 
speed  should  also  be  taken  into  account.  In  ad- 
dition to  these  methods  a  very  good  plan  would 
be  to  refuse  to  accept  any  written  work  in  any 
subject  which  failed  to  measure  up  to  a  certain 
minimum  requirement.  Due  allowance  should  be 
made,  of  course,  for  individual  deficiency  in  ca- 
pacity. 

In  this  chapter  we  have  attempted  to  apply 
the  principles  which  govern  the  writing  act  to  the 
problem  of  teaching.  We  considered,  first,  the 
various  matters  connected  with  form  in  writing, 
the  position  of  the  hand,  arm,  and  body,  pen- 
holding,  etc.  Next  were  discussed  the  applica- 
tion of  the  principles  governing  the  acquirement 
of  the  ability  properly  to  execute  the  movement . 
Finally,  the  organization  of  the  work  in  the  vari- 
ous grades  in  the  elementary  school  and  its  adap- 
tation to  the  stage  of  progress  of  the  pupils  was 
outlined.  Details  of  method,  including  some  ref- 
erence to  current  practice  and  to  points  of  con- 
ii6 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

troversy,  have  been  taken  up  where  they  seemed 
to  be  most  appropriate.  This  mode  of  treatment 
was  chosen  rather  than  the  separate  considera- 
tion of  methods  and  of  the  organization  of  the 
work  for  the  different  grades  in  order  to  avoid 
unnecessary  duplication.  In  this  form  we  have 
put  into  practical  appHcation  the  analysis  of  the 
physiological  and  psychological  principles  which 
occupied  the  earlier  sections  of  the  book. 


AIMS  AND  STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

The  purpose  of  handwriting  is  to  serve  as  a 
means  of  the  communication  of  thoughts  to 
other  persons.  It  is  therefore  a  tool  in  the  ex- 
pression of  thought.  The  most  immediate  con- 
cern of  education  with  reference  to  handwriting 
is  that  the  pupils  shall  develop  this  tool  to  the 
highest  degree  of  efficiency  which  will  justify  the 
time  and  energy  expended  and  that  this  shall  be 
done  in  the  most  economical  manner  possible. 
From  the  practical  point  of  view  then  we  need  to 
know  what  constitutes  efficient  writing  and  how 
it  can  be  recognized  or  measured. 

The  qualities  of  excellence  in  handwriting 

The  excellence  of  writing  may  be  considered 
from  the  standpoint  of  either  the  writer  or  the 
reader.  From  the  one  point  of  view  we  consider 
the  economy  of  production  and  from  the  other, 
economy  in  recognition.  In  the  past  it  has  been 
the  reader  who  has  been  chiefly  considered.  The 
monks  of  the  Middle  Ages  toiled  long  upon  a 
ii8 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

single  letter  and  produced  manuscripts  of  great 
beauty  and  legibility.  The  modern  school  child 
has  sometimes  been  taught  as  though  the  same 
ideal  of  achievement  were  suitable  for  him  with- 
out regard  for  the  fact  that  the  monk  was  pro- 
ducing a  permanent  record  which  might  be  read 
over  and  over  again  while  the  modern  writer  is 
producing  a  temporary  message  which  is  likely 
to  be  read  only  once.  In  this  case  the  time  and 
energy  of  the  writer  are  as  much  to  be  considered 
as  are  the  time  and  energy  of  the  reader. 

The  first  thing  we  must  know,  then,  in  order  to 
judge  of  the  efficiency  of  writing,  is  the  energy 
which  was  required  to  produce  it.  Since  we  can- 
not well  measure  the  expenditure  of  energy  di- 
rectly, we  have  recourse  to  an  indirect  measure, 
namely,  the  time  which  is  required  to  produce 
a  given  amount.  Assuming  that  two  persons  put 
forth  the  same  amount  of  effort  and  one  takes 
twice  as  long  to  write  one  hundred  words  as  the 
other,  the  one  who  takes  double  the  time  has 
expended  double  the  energy.  In  so  far  as  such 
expenditure  is  unnecessary  it  is  waste. 

Speed  and  its  measurement 

The  first  measure  of  the  efficiency  of  writing, 
then,  is  speed.  That  this  is  not  merely  a  theoreti- 
119 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

cal  consideration,  but  is  of  practical  importance, 
is  shown  by  the  great  divergence  in  the  speed 
of  writing  among  children  of  the  same  age  in  dif- 
ferent classes  or  schools.  Comparative  measure- 
ments have  shown  that  in  some  schools  or  school 
systems  the  speed  is  relatively  above  the  quality 
of  the  writing  when  a  certain  relation  between 
speed  and  quality  is  assumed  as  a  standard.  This 
method  of  comparison  is  illustrated  in  Fig.  ii, 
page  145.  In  other  cases  the  speed  is  below  the 
quahty,  and  in  still  other  cases  the  two  run  closely 
together.  The  same  divergences  appear  if  we 
compare  different  grades  in  the  same  school  or 
system. 

It  is  apparent,  then,  that  speed  is  sometimes 
developed  at  the  expense  of  quality,  and  vice  versa. 
But  we  cannot  assume  that  low  speed  is  always 
accompanied  by  good  quality  or  that  high  speed 
always  implies  poor  quality.  There  is  no  con- 
stant relationship  between  the  two  characteris- 
tics of  writing.  Sometimes,  for  example,  there  is 
high  excellence  in  both  respects  and  sometimes 
there  is  deficiency  in  both. 

If  we  wish,  then,  to  gain  an  accurate  notion 

of  the  efficiency  of  the  writing  of  any  child  or 

group  of  children,  we  must  measure  the  speed 

of  their  writing.  This  measurement  is  simple  in 

120 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

principle,  but  in  order  that  it  shall  be  reliable 
certain  precautions  must  be  taken. 

The  following  form  of  procedure  is  recommended. 
First  in  regard  to  the  matter  which  is  to  be  written. 
Since  our  aim  is  to  measure  merely  the  speed  of  writ- 
ing and  not  the  speed  of  the  thought  process,  the 
writing  should  not  be  interrupted  by  the  necessity 
for  reflection.  That  is,  the  child  should  memorize 
thoroughly  what  he  is  to  write  so  that  he  may  write 
continuously.  Again,  when  a  test  given  at  one  time 
is  to  be  compared  with  a  test  given  at  another  time, 
the  material  should  be  as  similar  as  possible  in  the 
two  tests,  though  not  identical.  For  this  purpose  it 
would  be  well  to  select  a  poem  of  uniform  character 
and  require  the  child  to  memorize  it  at  the  beginning 
of  the  experiment.  One  stanza  should  then  be  used 
at  the  first  test  and  the  second  stanza  at  the  second 
test,  etc.  If  the  child  finishes  the  stanza  within  the 
specified  period  he  should  begin  it  again  and  so  con- 
tinue until  the  end  of  the  period.  At  the  end  of  the 
experiment  it  would  be  well  to  have  the  child  write 
all  of  the  stanzas  at  one  time  in  order  to  find  out 
whether  they  are  of  equal  difficulty  or  not. 

A  three-minute  period  will  be  found  of  convenient 
length  for  a  test.  The  children  should  have  their 
paper  and  pens  ready  to  write  at  the  signal  from  the 
teacher.  They  should  then  wTite  continuously  until 
the  signal  to  stop  is  given.  Either  after  or  before  the 
test  each  child  should  write  his  name,  age  and  grade 
upon  the  paper. 

121 


THE  TEACHING   OF  HANDWRITING 

The  manner  of  giving  instruction  for  the  test  is 
important.  It  has  been  found,  for  example,  that  the 
result  will  vary  greatly  according  as  the  child  thinks 
that  the  speed  of  his  writing  or  the  quahty  is  being 
tested.  If,  now,  we  are  endeavoring  to  secure  his 
ordinary  writing  we  must  be  careful  to  avoid  giving 
the  impression  that  we  are  testing  particularly  either 
speed  or  form.  For  this  purpose  some  such  instruc- 
tion as  the  following  might  be  used.  Without  telling 
the  child  at  all  that  he  is  undergoing  a  test,  one  may 
say:  "Write  the  first  stanza  of  the  poem  which  you 
have  learned.  Write  it  just  as  you  would  in  a  com- 
position or  an  ordinary  school  exercise.  If  you  finish 
before  the  end  of  the  time,  begin  and  write  it  over 
again.  Begin  to  write  when  I  say  'Now'  and  stop 
w^hen  I  say  'Stop.'"  It  would  be  well  to  carry  on  a 
preliminary  experiment  in  order  to  be  sure  that  the 
children  understand  the  instructions.^ 

The  quality  of  the  written  product 

So  much  for  the  determination  of  efficiency 
from  the  standpoint  of  the  writer  himself.  The 
reader  must  also  be  considered.  So  soon  as  we 
get  beyond  the  judgment  of  the  ordinary  ob- 
server and  attempt  to  determine  differences  in 
excellence  more  precisely  it  becomes  necessary 

^  From  an  article  by  the  author  entitled  ''Problems  and 
Methods  of  Investigation  in  Handwriting,"  in  The  Journal  oj 
Educational  Psychology,  191 2,  pp.  181-90. 

122 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

to  answer  the  question  regarding  the  features  of 
writing  which  make  it  good  or  bad.  The  more 
exactly  we  answer  this  question  the  more  hkely 
we  will  be  to  agree  with  others  or  with  ourselves 
at  different  times  as  to  how  good  a  particular 
specimen  or  set  of  specimens  is.  Another  reason 
why  the  settlement  of  this  question  is  important 
is  that  it  will  make  it  possible  to  set  before  the 
pupil  a  definite  goal  of  attainment.  We  can  then 
say  to  the  pupil  not  only,  *' Your  writing  is  poor. 
Make  it  more  like  the  copy,"  but  we  can  point 
out  to  him  just  in  what  ways  it  is  poor  and  needs 
to  be  improved  in  order  that  it  may  resemble 
good  writing. 

Uniformity 

One  of  the  characteristics  which  is  most  obvi- 
ously related  to  excellence  in  writing  is  uniform- 
ity. Lack  of  uniformity  detracts  from  the  good 
appearance  of  writing  and  in  some  measure  from 
its  legibility.  There  are  two  aspects  of  writing 
in  which  lack  of  uniformity  may  be  readily  de- 
tected and  measured.  These  are  the  slant  and 
^linement  of  the  letters.  We  may  confine  our 
attention  to  the  two  or  more  space  letters  in 
judging  uniformity  of  slant  and  to  the  one-space 
letters  in  judging  uniformity  of  alinement. 
123 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING, 

The  charts  for  grading  uniformity  and  other 
characteristics 

In  order  to  illustrate  different  degrees  of  ex- 
cellence in  these  and  in  other  characteristics 
about  to  be  mentioned,  and  to  make  it  possible  to 
grade  writing  according  to  the  degree  to  which  it 
possesses  them,  a  series  of  charts  has  been  con- 
structed, which  is  reproduced  in  the  Appendix 
to  this  monograph.  Each  chart  represents  three 
degrees  of  excellence,  the  lowest  one  being  num- 
bered I  and  the  others  3  and  5  respectively.  The 
intermediate  numbers  2  and  4  may  be  used  when 
the  specimen  to  be  judged  seems  to  belong  about 
midway  between  the  ranks  above  and  below  it. 

The  specimens  for  these  charts  have  been  se- 
lected in  the  following  manner :  A  large  number 
of  specimens  of  the  writing  of  children  in  grades 
three  to  eight  were  examined  and  classified  into 
as  many  ranks  as  could  be  readily  distinguished, 
according  to  each  of  the  characteristics  or  cate- 
gories which  are  represented  on  the  scale.  In 
some  cases  four  ranks  were  distinguished  and  in 
the  others  five.  This,  then,  formed  a  tentative 
scale.  This  tentative  scale  was  then  used  as 
a  guide  by  twenty-three  advanced  students  in 
grading  one  hundred  specimens  into  ten  ranks 
124 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

according  to  each  category.  The  one  hundred 
specimens  were  selected  from  a  large  number  of 
specimens  of  writing  of  children  of  the  same 
grades  as  before  so  as  to  get  so  far  as  possible 
representatives  of  the  different  types  of  writing 
and  grades  of  excellence.  It  was  then  found  pos- 
sible to  select  specimens  which  should  represent 
ten  approximately  equal  steps  for  each  category 
on  the  basis  of  the  average  judgments  of  all  the 
graders. 

The  scale  which  was  thus  based  on  the  simple 
judgment  of  a  number  of  competent  judges,  even 
when  the  judgments  were  simplified  by  tentative 
scales  to  be  used  as  models  and  by  the  concentra- 
tion of  attention  on  a  single  attribute  at  a  time, 
did  not,  however,  produce  entirely  satisfactory 
results.  This  appeared  clearly  in  two  cases  in 
which  the  judgments  of  the  graders  could  be 
checked  up  by  objective  measurement,  namely, 
in  the  imiformity  of  slant  and  of  alinement.  It 
was  only  necessary  to  measure  the  average  devia- 
tion of  a  number  of  letters  in  each  specimen  to 
determine  that  the  order  in  which  they  were 
placed  by  the  rather  consistent  judgment  of  the 
graders  departed  widely  from  the  true  order. 

The  scale  was  then  remodeled  by  basing  the 
order  of  the  specimens  so  far  as  possible  on  an 
125 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

objective  measurement  of  the  characteristic  in 
question  or  at  least  employing  some  means  to  ex- 
aggerate the  characteristic  so  as  to  make  judg- 
ment easier.  How  this  was  done  in  each  case  will 
be  described  in  connection  with  the  discussion 
of  the  different  qualities  which  form  the  basis  of 
the  scale. 

If  the  unaided  judgment  of  the  grader  was  not 
sufficient  in  the  construction  of  the  scale  neither 
can  it  be  expected  to  be  sufficient  in  using  it.  In  the 
case  of  each  section  of  the  scale  then  some  device 
is  employed  to  emphasize  or  even  exaggerate  the 
characteristic  to  which  attention  is  to  be  given. 

Furthermore  it  cannot  be  too  strongly  asserted 
that  the  analysis  of  the  excellencies  or  defects  of 
writing  cannot  be  satisfactorily  made  except  by 
one  who  has  had  some  practice  in  the  matter  and 
who  has  made  himself  familiar  with  the  charac- 
teristic differences  which  are  to  be  found.  The 
impracticed  observer  in  this  as  in  other  fields 
simply  does  not  see  the  differences  which  must 
be  taken  into  account.  The  purpose  of  the  scale 
which  is  here  represented  is  to  serve  as  a  guide  to 
the  teacher  or  other  observer  in  learning  to  de- 
tect differences  in  the  elementary  characteris- 
tics of  writing  and  to  furnish  him  with  a  series  of 
numerical  designations  by  which  he  may  express 
126 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

his  judgments.  By  this  means  a  permanent 
record  may  be  made  of  the  judgments  which 
are  passed,  and  they  may  be  compared  with 
judgments  passed  upon  other  specimens. 

Uniformity  of  slant 

To  return  to  the  category  uniformity  of  slant. 
By  reference  to  Chart  i  in  the  Appendix  it  will  be 
seen  that  three  degrees  of  uniformity  are  repre- 
sented. In  order  to  make  prominent  the  feature 
which  is  to  be  estimated  lines  are  drawn  parallel 
to  the  down  strokes  of  the  two  or  more  space  let- 
ters, which  may  be  used  as  the  basis  for  the  judg- 
ment. The  amount  in  degrees  of  the  deviation 
from  uniformity  as  expressed  by  the  average 
deviation  is  given  in  the  column  to  the  left  of 
each  specimen  under  the  caption  M.  V.  The 
judgment  upon  a  specimen  should  be  recorded 
in  terms  of  the  rank  which  seems  most  closely  to 
correspond  to  it  in  the  scale.  It  will  be  noticed 
that  the  amount  of  difference  between  ranks  i 
and  3  is  greater  than  that  between  ranks  3  and 
5.  The  reason  for  this  difference  is  that  it  is  pre- 
sumably easier  to  distinguish  differences  in  vari- 
ability when  the  uniformity  is  high  than  when 
it  is  low.  The  same  assumption  is  made  in  the 
case  of  uniformity  of  alinement. 
127 


THE  TEACHING   OF  HANDWRITING 

In  order  to  render  the  judgment  of  the  uni- 
formity of  slant  in  the  specimen  to  be  graded 
easier,  in  somewhat  the  fashion  that  comparison 
of  the  specimens  in  the  scale  is  facilitated,  the  lines 
of  Fig.  13,  page  151,  may  be  traced  on  a  sheet 
of  transparent  paper.  If  the  series  of  parallel  lines 
which  most  nearly  resemble  the  slant  of  the 
writing  to  be  judged  is  placed  above  the  writing, 
the  degree  of  deviation  can  be  estimated  by  com- 
parison with  the  standard  lines. 

Uniformity  of  alinement 

Uniformity  of  alinement  is  represented  in  Chart 
II.  Uniformity  is  measured  with  reference  to  the 
tops  and  bottoms  of  the  one-space  letters.  The 
degree  of  deviation  was  calculated  on  the  basis 
of  the  average  deviation  in  the  distance  of  these 
points  from  a  straight  base  line.  As  in  the  case 
of  uniformity  of  slant,  guide  lines  are  drawn  to 
make  it  easier  to  detect  the  amount  of  deviation. 
A  guide  line  is  also  supplied  in  Fig.  13,  which 
when  traced  may  be  placed  over  the  specimen  to 
be  judged.  As  in  the  case  of  uniformity  of  slant 
the  judgment  should  be  recorded  in  terms  of  the 
rank  of  the  corresponding  specimen  in  the  chart. 

A  difficulty  arises  in  judging  uniformity  of  aline- 
ment due  to  the  fact  that  deviations  are  mor^ 
128 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

striking  when  the  letters  are  close  together  than 
when  they  are  spread  farther  apart.  This  may  be 
seen  by  comparing  the  specimens  of  rank  2,  both 
of  which  have  the  same  average  deviation.  The 
use  of  a  guide  line  overcomes  the  difficulty  to 
some  extent,  but  not  wholly.  It  must  also  be  con- 
sciously guarded  against. 

Quality  of  the  line  or  stroke 

A  third  important  characteristic  of  writing  is 
the  quality  of  the  line  or  stroke  by  which  the 
letters  are  produced.  The  stroke  may  be  smooth, 
firm,  and  even;  or  it  may  be  tremulous,  weak,  and 
irregular.  The  one  kind  of  stroke  inevitably  sug- 
gests a  smoothly  flowing,  free,  and  regular  move- 
ment, and  the  other  an  uneven,  jerky,  cramped 
movement.  The  differences,  however,  are  not 
always  easy  to  detect,  and  in  order  to  make  them 
more  evident  portions  of  each  specimen  in  the 
chart  (Chart  iii)  are  enlarged.  After  the  enlarged 
records  have  been  examined  the  irregularities 
may  be  made  out  in  the  originals.  If  further  as- 
sistance in  grading  is  desired  the  writing  on  the 
specimens  to  be  graded  may  be  enlarged  by 
means  of  a  reading  glass. 

The  quality  of  the  stroke  is  important  not  only 
for  what  it  indicates  of  the  character  of  the  move- 
129 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

ment  but  also  because  it  affects  the  beauty,  and 
to  some  degree  the  legibility,  of  the  writing  itself. 

Excellence  in  the  qualities  of  uniformity  and 
character  of  the  line  is  based  chiefly  on  the  pos- 
session of  a  well-coordinated  writing  movement, 
and  deficiencies  in  these  regards  are  to  be  over- 
come largely  through  the  acquirement  of  an  easy, 
fluent,  regular  movement.  That  is,  mistakes  in 
these  matters  are  to  be  corrected  more  by  atten- 
tion to  the  movement  than  by  fixing  attention 
directly  on  the  writing  itself.  Irregularities  in 
slant,  for  example,  are  due  to  the  fact  that  in 
making  succeeding  strokes  the  hand  or  arm  is  not 
in  the  same  position.  Sometimes  the  variations 
in  position  and  the  accompanying  shifts  in  slant 
occur  frequently  and  at  irregular  intervals;  and 
sometimes  the  slant  is  uniform  for  a  number  of 
words,  or  even  lines,  and  then  there  is  a  sudden 
change.  There  is  also  one  other  type  of  change 
in  slant  which  is  due,  paradoxically,  not  to  a 
change  in  the  manner  of  holding  the  hand  or 
arm,  but  to  the  maintenance  of  the  same  position. 
This  is  the  increased  slant  which  occurs  at  the 
end  of  the  line.  This  type  of  variation  was  dis- 
cussed in  a  former  chapter. 

We  have  next  to  consider  two  features  of  writ- 
ing which  are  not  so  immediately  related  to  the 
130 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

character  of  the  writing  movement.  That  is, 
their  development  is  brought  about  not  so  much 
by  giving  attention  to  the  perfection  of  the  move- 
ment as  by  giving  direct  attention  to  the  letters 
and  words  which  are  produced  by  the  movement. 
The  two  features  which  come  under  this  head  are 
letter  formation  and  spacing. 

That  there  are  these  two  classes  of  qualities  in 
writing,  one  of  which  is  to  be  developed  by  giving 
attention  to  the  movement  and  the  other  by  con- 
sidering the  character  of  the  written  product,  is 
not  always  recognized.  Some  would  trust  for  the 
amelioration  of  all  writing  evils  to  the  develop- 
ment of  the  right  sort  of  movement,  while  others 
would  allow  movement  to  develop  in  a  hit  or 
miss  manner  in  the  process  of  trying  to  pro- 
duce well-formed  letters.  The  distinction  here 
drawn  implies  that  neither  of  these  methods  by 
itself  is  adequate. 

Letter  formation 

Letter  formation  is  the  matter  to  which  the 
child's  attention  has  been  chiefly  directed  in  the 
traditional  methods  of  teaching.  It  still  is  of 
more  importance  than  any  other  one  feature,  and 
we  shall  express  this  superior  importance  by  giv- 
ing it  double  weight  in  the  final  score.   Hence  in 

131 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

Chart  IV  the  three  ranks  which  are  represented 
are  designated  2,6,  and  10  instead  of  1,3,  and  5, 
and  the  intermediate  ranks  should  be  numbered 
4  and  8  instead  of  2  and  4.  This  increased  weight 
given  to  letter  formation  is  justified  by  the  fact 
that  the  form  of  the  letters  is  the  fundamental 
basis  of  legibihty. 

The  task  of  grading  letter  formation  presents 
peculiar  difficulties  which  are  due  to  the  confu- 
sion between  fundamental  and  universal  features 
of  the  form  of  a  letter  and  those  features  which 
are  peculiar  to  a  particular  style  of  alphabet. 
Thus,  for  example,  in  some  copies  which  are  set 
up  as  a  standard  the  second  up  stroke  of  the  m  or 
n  leaves  the  preceding  down  stroke  immediately, 
while  in  other  styles  it  follows  the  down  stroke 
for  half  or  more  of  the  way  up.  Now  it  seems 
obvious  that  in  any  method  which  is  to  be  used  in 
judging  any  style  of  writing,  as  is  the  case  with 
this  method,  only  those  characteristics  of  the  let- 
ters which  are  universal  and  essential  must  be  con- 
sidered. 

One  principle  at  least  is  clear  as  governing 
letter  formation.  No  letter  should  vary  from  its 
conventional  form  in  such  a  way  that  it  is  likely 
to  be  confused  with  another  letter  or  to  lose  its 
characteristic  form.  It  is  not  always  easy  to  de- 
132 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

termine  whether  a  particular  deviation  from  the 
conventional  form  is  detrimental  to  the  ease 
with  which  the  writing  can  be  read  or  not.  In 
general  we  may  put  the  burden  of  proof  on  the 
person  who  makes  the  deviation,  and  if  there 
is  doubt  incline  to  the  view  that  the  deviation 
should  be  discouraged.  There  are  many  devia- 
tions, however,  which  clearly  do  not  render  the 
writing  less  legible  and  it  is  pedantry  to  seek  to 
prevent  them.  Every  adult  writer  who  uses  his 
pen  much  falls  into  ways  of  making  the  letters 
which  are  more  or  less  peculiar  to  himself,  and 
there  is  no  reason  why  children  should  not  be 
allowed  the  same  privilege  provided  they  do  not 
shift  too  often  from  one  style  to  another. 

The  figure  on  page  135  (Fig.  9)  illustrates  a 
large  number  of  typical  errors  arranged  accord- 
ing to  the  order  of  the  letters  in  the  alphabet.  A 
number  of  common  principles  may  also  be  traced 
among  groups  of  letters. 

A  frequent  fault  which  is  common  to  a  number 
of  letters  consists  in  leaving  a  loop  open  which 
should  be  closed  or  closing  a  loop  which  should 
be  open.  This  is  illustrated  in  the  specimens  of 
the  letters  a,  d,J,  g,  0,  q,  s,  and  v.  Sometimes  the 
legibility  is  seriously  affected  by  the  fact  that  the 
stroke  runs  higher  or  lower  than  it  should.  This 

133 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

may  affect  only  part  of  the  letter  or  it  may  make 
the  whole  letter  too  large  or  too  small.  Examples 
appear  in  the  second  b,  the  second/,  the/'s,  the 
second  k,  the  second  /,  the  second  n,  the  second  o, 
the  first  q,  the  second  y,  and  the  z.  The  confusion 
due  to  size  commonly  occurs  when  the  capitals 
are  made  like  the  small  letters,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  ^,  C,  G,  M,  N,  0,  Q,  S,  U,  V,  W,  X,  F,  and 
Z.  (These  are  not  shown  in  the  figure.)  Often  an 
important  part  of  the  letter  is  slurred  over  so  as 
to  cause  it  to  lose  its  characteristic  form,  as  may 
be  seen  in  the  figure  in  the  case  of  letters  b,  h,  c 
(first  specimen  under  i),  k,  q,  r,  s,  w,  and  y.  The 
substitution  of  angles  for  curves  and  vice  versa  is 
illustrated  in  the  m,  the  n,  and  the  u.  The  sub- 
stitution of  loops  for  return  strokes  along  the 
same  line  or  the  reverse  is  seen  in  the  letters  c,  d, 
e,  f,  i,  and  t.  Sometimes  a  return  stroke  is  sub- 
stituted for  an  open  curve  or  an  open  curve  for  a 
return  stroke,  as  in  the  first  r,  aijd  the  first  v. 
Finally,  a  stroke  may  have  faulty  direction  or  be 
misplaced,  as  in  the  second  t,  the  first  u,  or  the 
x's,  or  the  spacing  may  be  irregular,  as  between 
the  first  c  and  the  letter  following  it. 

The  chief  consideration  which  is  at  the  basis 
of  the  foregoing  analysis  of  errors  in  letter  forma- 
tion is  legibility.  The  factor  of  beauty  must  also 

134 


<yl-nA~<^ 


^-^C^^  ^^-^^^      £-^o^-z^ 

//  Types    of   Illegible  form$    of 

^    ^^■^^■'M-^I^C^  letters      which      are      to      be 

Q  counted    as    errors. 

Figure  9 

Illustration  of  gross  errors  in  letter  formation. 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

be  taken  into  account.  From  this  point  of  view  a 
letter  may  be  easily  distinguishable,  but  may  not 
be  pleasing  because  it  does  not  conform  to  its 
type.  We  should  be  getting  on  debatable  ground 
if  we  should  attempt  to  choose  between  different 
types  of  script,  but  it  is  clear  that  whatever  type 
is  used,  the  individual  letters  should  conform  to 
it.  In  other  words,  the  letter  formation  should 
be  consistent.  Strokes  of  the  same  nature,  for 
example,  should  be  made  in  the  same  way.  Thus 
the  similar  strokes  oi  the  h,  m,  n,  p;  of  the  a,  t/, 
g,  and  q;  of  the  i,  u,  v,  w,  should  be  alike  in  fact 
as  well  as  in  theory  if  the  writing  is  to  present 
the  most  pleasing  appearance.  What  degree  of 
excellence  we  should  require  of  the  average  pupil 
in  the  elementary  school  is  a  question  to  be  deter- 
mined, but  it  is  certain  that  letter  formation  as 
here  defined  is  an  element  of  writing  excellence. 

These  two  factors  in  letter  formation  taken 
together,  legibility  and  beauty,  constitute  the 
basis  of  grading  in  this  characteristic.  In  this,  as 
in  the  other  characteristics,  three  grades  of  ex- 
cellence are  represented  in  Chart  iv.  The  speci- 
mens were  graded  independently  by  two  methods, 
and  their  final  rank  was  determined  by  combin- 
ing the  results  of  the  two  methods.  First,  ten 
specimens  were  chosen  from  the  one  hundred 
136 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

which  had  been  ranked  by  the  twenty-three 
judges  so  as  to  represent  approximately  equal 
intervals.  Then  these  ten  specimens  were  ranked 
by  a  method  of  detailed  analysis  of  each  letter 
in  which  the  faults  of  each  stroke  were  counted.^ 
These  faults  are  indicated  on  the  chart  by  small 
arrowheads.  The  results  of  the  two  methods 
were  expressed  in  terms  of  percentage  and  aver- 
aged. The  average  percentages,  based  on  a  range 
of  o  to  ICO,  are  given  in  the  column  at  the  left 
of  the  specimens.  It  will  be  seen  that  the  gross 
errors  illustrated  in  Fig.  9  are  relatively  infre- 
quent in  the  specimens  of  the  scale.  They  occur 
only  in  the  most  careless  writing,  and  in  order  to 
distinguish  any  but  the  lowest  degrees  of  excel- 
lence we  must  employ  the  more  minute  analysis 
such  as  is  illustrated  in  the  chart. 

Spacing 

There  remains  a  fifth  feature  of  writing  which 
has  a  very  important  bearing  on  its  quality, 
both  from  the  point  of  view  of  legibility  and  of 
beauty,  and  that  is  spacing.    We  may  confine 

^  This  work  was  done  by  Mr.  R.  R.  Simpkins,  of  the  State 
Normal  School  at  Macomb,  Illinois,  whose  service  the  writer 
gratefully  acknowledges.  Mr.  Simpkins  used  a  system  of  mark- 
ing devised  by  himself. 


THE  TEACHING  OF   HANDWRITING 

our  attention  to  spacing  between  letters  and  be- 
tween words,  although  the  space  between  lines 
is  also  of  great  importance.  Line  spacing,  how- 
ever, is  usually  determined  for  the  child  by  the 
fact  that  he  writes  on  lined  paper.  Furthermore, 
while  crowding  the  lines  together  is  a  serious 
fault,  it  is  not  difHcult  to  correct. 

The  three  faults  in  spacing  between  letters  and 
words  which  are  of  importance  are  first  crowding 
the  letters,  second,  spreading  them  too  far  apart, 
and  third,  crowding  the  words.  The  fourth  possi- 
bility, that  of  spreading  the  words  too  far  apart, 
is  not  so  frequently  found,  nor  does  it  seriously 
detract  from  the  quality  of  the  writing.  These 
faults  may  exist  alone  or  singly.  To  illustrate  them 
a  scale,  Chart  v,  has  been  artificially  made  by 
constructing  specimens  in  which  the  spacing  is 
correct,  or  in  which  faults  of  spacing  exist  singly 
or  in  combination.  Those  specimens  which  have 
one  fault  are  placed  in  the  middle  rank  and 
those  which  have  two  are  placed  in  the  lowest 
rank. 

The  correct  spacing  for  three  different  styles  of 
writing  was  first  found  in  the  following  manner. 
Fifteen  persons  were  asked  to  judge  what  spacing 
between  the  letters  and  words  in  the  specimens 
was  most  pleasing.  The  spacing  was  varied  by 

138 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

a  device  which  need  not  be  described  here.  The 
median  of  their  judgments  was  then  taken  as 
the  most  satisfactory  spacing.  Variations  in  the 
spacing  of  these  specimens  were  then  artificially 
produced  by  the  use  of  tracing  paper  and  in 
this  way  the  specimens  of  ranks  3  and  i  were 
produced.  The  representation  of  these  various 
possible  variations  from  the  standard  serves  as 
a  guide  in  discovering  the  kinds  and  degrees  or 
variations  in  the  samples  to  be  judged  and  makes 
it  possible  to  give  them  an  appropriate  rank. 

When  a  specimen  has  been  given  a  rank  in 
each  of  the  five  characteristics  a  total  grade  may 
be  given  it  by  adding  the  individual  measures. 
This  gives  equal  weight  to  the  different  charac- 
teristics except  letter  formation,  and  until  we 
have  further  evidence  than  is  now  at  our  com- 
mand regarding  their  relative  importance  this  is 
the  best  we  can  do. 

Grading  a  specimen  for  illustration 
The  procedure  of  grading  a  specimen  of  writing 
by  means  of  the  scale  may  be  made  clear  by 
grading  the  sample  specimen  shown  in  Fig.  10. 
The  slant  of  this  specimen  is  rather  variable.  It 
grades  not  over  3.  Uniformity  of  alinement  is 
also  very  low.  See  for  example  the  variation  ir» 
139 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

the  words  sweet  and  land.  The  specimen  deserves 
but  rank  2  in  this  characteristic.  Quality  of  line 
is  equally  poor  and  receives  also  rank  2.  The 
formation  of  the  letters  is  better,  though  it  is 
afifected  by  the  irregularities  which  have  been 
already  noted.  We  may  grade  letter  formation 
by  the  middle  rank,  6.  Spacing  is  the  strongest 
point  of  the  specimen  and  deserves  a  rank  of  4. 
The  rank  of  the  paper  then  is:  Uniformity  of 
slant,  3;  uniformity  of  alinement,  2;  quality  of 
line,  2;  letter  formation,  6;  and  spacing,  4;  total, 
17.  It  is  clear  from  this  analysis  what  the  chief 
trouble  with  this  specimen  is.  It  grades  low  in 
those  characteristics  which  depend  primarily  on 
the  character  of  the  writing  movement  and 
higher  in  those  characteristics  which  depend 
more  on  the  recognition  of  the  form  of  the  written 
words.  What  this  pupil  needs  is  the  acquisition 
of  a  smooth,  well-coordinated  movement. 

The  fundamental  aim  of  this  scale  is  to  assist 
the  teacher  to  pick  out  and  to  designate  in  nu- 
merical terms  the  degrees  of  excellence  of  each 
pupil's  writing.  It  is  primarily  for  the  use  of  the 
teacher.  The  teacher  has  to  lead  the  pupil  to  a 
correction  of  his  faults,  not  merely  to  tell  him 
how  bad  his  writing  is.  The  teacher  must  there- 
fore be  able  to  discriminate  one  kind  of  fault 
140 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

from  another.  She  must  also  be  able  to  keep  a 
record  of  the  pupil's  advancement,  not  merely  in 
a  general  way,  but  also  in  respect  to  the  various 
elements  of  his  performance.  The  time  is  coming 
when  the  pupil  will  have  definite  standards  of 
attainment  set  up  before  him  and  when  his  prog- 
ress toward  those  standards  will  be  carefully 
recorded  and  revealed  to  him.  Probably  also 
when  the  pupil  has  reached  the  standard  of 
attainment  in  a  particular  branch  he  will  be 
relieved  of  further  work  in  that  Hne,  regardless  of 
the  grade  he  may  happen  to  be  in.  The  necessary 
preliminary  to  this  condition  is  the  possession  oi 
means  of  definitely  determining  in  a  discriminat- 
ing way  what  the  pupil's  attainment  is.  To  serve 
such  a  purpose  for  writing  is  the  aim  of  this  scale. 

Standards  of  attainment 

The  pupil's  progress  and  his  ultimate  attain- 
ment should  be  judged,  then,  not  on  the  basis  of 
the  comparison  of  his  work  with  that  of  his  class- 
mates, but  rather  by  a  comparison  of  his  work 
with  a  standard  of  achievement.  It  therefore 
becomes  necessary  to  determine  upon  a  standard 
which  can  reasonably  be  required.  If  such  a 
standard  is  necessary  for  the  rational  grading  and 
promotion  of  the  individual  pupil,  it  is  still  more 
142 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

obviously  required  for  the  purpose  of  judging  the 
efficiency  of  teachers  or  the  value  of  particular 
methods  of  teaching. 

For  the  determination  of  a  rational  standard 
of  achievement  in  writing  in  the  grades,  several 
inter-related  factors  must  be  taken  into  account. 
In  the  first  place,  we  must  know  what  are  the 
^^mits  of  attainment  of  ordinary  pupils  of  various 
grades  or  ages  under  the  best  teaching  to  be 
found.  If  we  have  reason  to  conclude  that  the 
maximum  of  attainment  possible  is  nowhere 
reached,  we  may  perhaps  place  the  standard 
above  anything  that  is  actually  found.  We  are 
never  justified,  however,  in  placing  the  standard 
below  what  has  been  actually  attained  and  has 
therefore  been  proven  to  be  possible  of  attain- 
ment. The  average  of  attainment  in  the  public 
schools  in  general  cannot  therefore  be  regarded 
as  a  valid  standard. 

This  principle  of  maximum  attainment  pos- 
sible may  be  applied  to  a  comparison  of  lower  and 
higher  grades  as  well  as  of  different  schools  or 
systems.  In  this  connection,  it  may  be  stated 
thus:  the  maximum  attainment  in  any  grade  is 
to  be  taken  into  account  in  judging  the  attain- 
ment of  the  succeeding  grades.  In  other  words, 
every  grade  may  reasonably  be  expected  to  reach 

143 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

a  higher  standard  of  attainment  than  the  preced- 
ing grade. 

The  second  general  principle  which  must  be 
taken  into  account  in  setting  up  standards  is  that 
the  value  of  any  particular  degree  of  attainment 
must  be  judged  in  relation  to  the  amount  of  teach- 
ing and  learning  time  which  is  required  in  order  to 
reach  it.  In  this  connection,  we  must  consider  par- 
ticularly the  law  of  diminishing  returns  in  prac- 
tice. After  a  certain  amount  of  time  has  been 
spent  on  practice,  the  expenditure  of  additional 
time  does  not  result  in  a  proportionate  gain  in 
efficiency.  A  slight  superiority  in  attainment  in 
writing  which  is  purchased  by  the  expenditure 
of  a  large  amount  of  extra  time  is  not  profitable 
unless  such  superiority  is  found  to  be  essential. 

This  brings  us  to  the  third  principle,  which  is 
that  the  amount  of  time  which  it  is  worth  while 
ho  spend  and  the  degree  of  eiEciency  which  it  is 
worth  while  to  attain  is  to  be  judged  in  view  of 
the  social  demand  for  this  particular  product  of 
education  in  comparison  with  the  demand  for 
other  products.  This  social  demand  must,  of 
course,  be  viewed  in  the  broadest  way  and  must 
not  be  confined  to  the  narrow  industrial  or  com- 
mercial demand. 

We  have  not  yet  sufficient  data  for  a  complete 
144 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 


application  of  these  principles  to  writing/  but 
they  may  serve  to  guide  us  in  setting  up  tentative 
standards.  The  best  results  for  our  purpose 
which  have  been  published  have  been  attained 


Qua  lit}' 
70 


es 


65 


Quality- 


Speed 


s 

:hoo 

1  A 

^ 

^ 

Speed- 

^ 

^ 

'^ 

=^ 

-- 

7^ 

.^'' 

Q-»* 

fX- 

^ 

_^ 

^ 

^ 

// 

'\ 

/ 
/ 

^- 

;■> 

^ 

^ 

^S^ 

I 

^^' 

-^ 

^ 

^ 

/ 

^ 

y^ 

^,' 

6. 

f 

"~~- 

''' 

1 

30 
Grade  IB  lA  2B  2A  SB  3A  4B  4A  5B  6A  63  6A  7B  7A  8B  8A 

Figure  ii 


by  the  schools  in  Connersville,  Indiana,  as  re- 
ported by  Superintendent  Wilson. ^  The  data  are 
presented  graphically  in  the  accompanying  chart 
(Fig.  ii). 
The  two  dotted  lines  marked  quality  and  speed 

*  The  writer  is  now  engaged  in  an  investigation  for  the  Com- 
mittee on  Economy  of  Time  of  the  Department  of  Superii-»-i 
tendence  which  will  give  more  detailed  facts  on  which  to  base 
conclusions.  The  results  will  be  published  in  the  19 15  Year- 
book of  the  National  Society  for  the  Study  of  Education. 

»  G.  M.  Wilson,  "The  Handwriting  of  School  Children," 
Elementary  School  Teacher,  191 1,  vol.  xi,  pp.  540-43. 

I4S 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

represent  the  attainment  of  the  various  grades  in 
the  first  test  given.  Quality,  which  has  been  put 
in  terms  of  the  Ayers  Scale, ^  is  to  be  read  by 
reference  to  the  figures  on  the  left  margin  and 
speed  in  terms  of  letters  per  minute  by  reference 
to  the  figures  at  the  right.  After  the  test  an  effort 
was  made  to  improve  the  writing,  particularly  in 
speed.  The  result  of  the  effort  is  presented  for 
grade  6 A,  and  is  indicated  on  the  chart  by  the 
horizontal  strokes  on  the  column  for  grade  6A 
marked  ^'quahty"  and  ''speed."  The  heavy 
black  line  running  diagonally  across  the  chart 
represents  a  proposed  tentative  standard  and 
may  be  discussed  on  the  basis  of  the  principles 
and  facts  which  have  been  presented. 

With  the  data  at  hand  we  can  apply  most  com- 
pletely the  first  principle  which  is  concerned  with 
the  best  attainment  to  be  found.  It  will  be  seen 
that  the  school  system  represented  in  the  chart 
comes  up  to  the  tentative  standard  as  far  as 
grade  4A,  if  we  strike  an  average  between  speed 
and  quality.  The  speed  in  the  case  is  obviously 
too  slow  and  raising  it  would  probably  bring 
down  the  quality  in  these  lower  grades.  Above 
grade  4A  the  actual  performance  in  the  first  test 

1  L.  P.  Ayers,  A  Scale  for  Measuring  the  Handwriting  of 
School  Children.  Russell  Sage  Foundation  Publications  no.  113. 

146 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

is  below  the  standard,  but  in  grade  6B  the  stand- 
ard is  almost  reached.  Beyond  this  grade  no 
progress  was  made.  That  this  condition,  which 
violates  the  general  principle  laid  down  above,  is 
unnecessary  is  shown  by  the  great  improvement 
which  was  made  after  the  test  in  both  speed  and 
quahty  by  grade  6 A,  which  brought  this  grade 
considerably  above  the  standard.  It  is  reason- 
able to  suppose  that  the  other  grades  could  do 
proportionately  as  well. 

The  objection  may  be  made  that  while  the 
standard  laid  down,  which  requires  the  ability 
to  write  one  hundred  letters  a  minute  with  a 
quality  equivalent  to  grade  70  on  the  Ayers  Scale 
at  the  conclusion  of  the  eighth  grade,  is  possible 
of  attainment,  such  a  degree  of  attainment  is  not 
worth  the  effort  necessary  to  reach  it.  We  do  not 
know  the  time  which  was  spent  in  teaching  writ- 
ing in  the  school  system  under  consideration, 
but  there  is  no  reason  to  think  that  it  exceeded 
the  average,  which  is  about  fifteen  minutes  a  day. 
For  many  occupations  certainly  the  standard  is 
not  merely  not  high,  but  it  is  low.  Thus  for 
the  clerk,  the  bookkeeper,  the  agent  or  superin- 
tendent who  must  make  out  reports,  the  small 
business  or  professional  man  who  writes  his  own 
letters,  the  teacher,  etc.,  a  fluent  and  legible 

147 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

style  of  writing  is  essential.  What  proportion  of 
eighth-grade  graduates  enter  these  occupations, 
we  do  not  know,  but  some  estimate  can  be  made 
for  the  larger  cities  from  a  table  compiled  by 
Ayers.^  He  found  that  thirty-four  per  cent  of 
the  fathers  of  elementary  school  children  were 
classed  as  clerks  and  salesmen,  managers,  super- 
intendents and  proprietors,  and  professional  and 
financial  workers.  In  addition,  forty  per  cent 
were  classed  as  artisans  and  industrial  foremen, 
and  a  large  number  of  these  should  be  able  to 
write  well.  Furthermore,  the  pupils  who  enter 
high  school,  who  form  thirty-five  per  cent  of  the 
school  population  according  to  Strayer's  estimate 
in  the  article  on  ^'Retardation  and  Elimination" 
in  the  Cyclopedia  of  Education,  have  much  use 
for  rapid  and  legible  writing. 

It  should  not  be  inferred  from  the  preceding 
discussion  that  the  eighth-grade  standard  as  set 
forth  above  represents  either  very  good  or  very 
rapid  writing.  A  glance  at  the  specimens  of 
grade  70  on  the  Ayers  Scale  will  convince  the 
reader  that  the  form  is  not  excessively  good. 
That  the  rate  of  100  letters  a  minute  is  not  exces- 
sive for  the  eighth  grade  is  shown  by  the  fact 

^  L.  P.  Ayers,  "Factors  affecting  Industrial  Education," 
Elementary  School  Teacher,  19 14,  vol.  xiv,  pp.  313-18. 

148 


STANDARDS  FOR  HANDWRITING 

that  the  sixth  grade  of  one  school  which  the 
writer  investigated  wrote  at  the  average  rate  of 
114  letters  a  minute  without  falling  below  the 
average  in  quality. 

The  discussion  of  standards  thus  far  has  been 
in  terms  of  the  Ayers  Scale,  since  the  measure- 
ments have  been  made  in  terms  of  either  this  or 
the  Thorndike  Scale. ^  For  the  convenience  of 
those  who  may  use  the  scale  described  in  this 
book  for  teaching  purposes,  and  who  may  wish  to 
use  the  results  which  are  obtained  with  it  to  com- 
pare their  grade  or  school  with  the  standard,  a 
second  standard  has  been  worked  out  in  terms 
of  the  analytical  scale  described  in  this  chapter 
which  is  approximately  equivalent  to  the  stand- 
ard presented  above.  (See  Fig.  12).  The  equiva- 
lence of  the  two  standards  was  worked  out  by 
grading  the  same  set  of  papers  by  the  two  scales. 

The  way  in  which  an  absolute  standard  of 
attainment  such  as  is  here  set  forth  may  be  used 
in  the  grading  and  promotion  of  individual  pupils 
has  already  been  incidentally  suggested.  Every 
test  of  the  ability  of  pupils  in  handwriting  brings 
out  the  fact  of  a  large  amount  of  overlapping  of 
the  successive  grades.   Many  children  are  supe- 

*  E.  L.  Thorndike,  "Handwriting,"  Teachers  College  Record, 
1910,  vol.  IX,  no.  2. 

149 


THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 


rior  in  attainment  to  the  average  of  attainment  of 
several  grades  above  them.  If  the  children  were 
given  an  additional  incentive  to  improvement  by 


Quality  (analytical  scale) 

Speed 
100 

22 
21 
SO 

^ 

^ 

^ 

^ 

80 
70 

^ 

^ 

^ 

19 

18 

^ 

60 
50 

^ 

^ 

^ 

17 
16 

^ 

40 

^ 

^ 

30 

Grad 

e     IB  .lA    2B    2A    3B    3A    4B    4A    5B    5A    6B    6A    7B    7A    8B    8A 

Fi 

GF 

RE 

12 

being  granted  exemption  from  the  writing  lesson 
or  promotion  to  a  higher  grade  in  writing  as  soon 
as  they  had  attained  the  standard  of  the  second 
grade  above  them,  many  of  them  would  soon,  in 
all  probabiHty,  attain  this  degree  of  efficiency. 
We  can  do  no  more  here  than  suggest  the  possi- 
bilities of  this  type  of  application  of  an  educa- 
tional standard  in  solving  the  problem  of  waste 
in  education.  The  suggested  solution  rests  upon 
the  practice,  first,  of  setting  up  definite  standards 
of  attainment,  and,  second,  of  furnishing  the  pupil 
adequate  incentives  to  come  up  to  the  standards. 
ISO 


OUTLINE 


I.  THE  NATURE  OF  THE  PROBLEM 

1.  Handwriting  a  new  form  of  expression      ...  f 

2.  The  teaching  problem  centers  in  the  writing 
movement 2 

3.  An  artificial  product  of  training  rather  than  an 
instinctive  activity 3 

4.  Psychology,  physiology,  and  hygiene  involved  .  4 


II.  THE  CONSTITUTION  AND  DEVELOPMENT 
OF  THE  WRITING  PROCESS 

1.  The  writing  act  is  complex 8 

2.  The  movement  is  composed  of  a  variety  of  ele- 
mentary movements 9 

3.  Writing  also  involves  control  sensations  and 
language  ideas 19 

4.  How   the   mental  process  becomes   simplified 
through  practice 21 

5.  The  movement  becomes  organized  with  practice      25 

6.  As  the  movement  becomes  organized  the  atten- 
tion comes  to  comprehend  larger  units     ...     27 

7.  Learning  to  write  is  conditioned  partly  by  the 
stages  of  development  at  different  ages    ...    29 

153 


OUTLINE 


III.  THE  PSYCHOLOGY  AND  HYGIENE  OF 
WRITING 

1.  The  requirements  of  good  posture  and  their  con- 
sequences for  writing 32 

2.  Requirements  of  hygiene  of  the  eyes    ....  41 

3.  The  hygiene  of  movement 45 

4.  Writer's  cramp 52 

IV.  THE  TEACHING  OF  HANDWRITING 

/    I.  Correct  form  in  the  writing  movement     ...  56 

2.  Penholding       57 

3.  Position  of  the  arm 62 

4.  Learning  to  execute  the  movement:  the  trial  and 
success  method 64 

5.  The  need  of  many  repetitions 66 

6.  The  necessity  of  attention 67 

7.  Incentives  to  attention  should  be  chiefly  intrinsic  69 

8.  Analysis  of  defects  in  writing  and  their  causes, 

in  use  by  Principal  Reavis 72 

9.  Length  and  frequency  of  periods  of  practice      .  73 

10.  Imitation  of  a  person  writing  better  than  imita- 
tion of  a  copy  merely 74 

11.  The  special  methods  adapted  to  different  grades  77 

12.  Handwriting  in  the  primary  grades      .     .     .     .  78 

a.  When  the  beginner  may  be  taught  .     .     .     .  78 

b.  His  writing  should  be  very  large     ....  80 

c.  He  should  write  with  the  arm  as  a  whole     .  80 

d.  Appropriate  standards  of  size,  speed,  and  ac- 
curacy      82 

154 


OUTLINE 

e.  The  requirement  as  to  speed 83 

/.  The  standards  of  speed  and  accuracy  must  ad- 
vance together 85 

g.  Writing  should  have  meaning  to  the  child 

from  the  beginning 87 

h.  The  words  and  sentences  should  present  pro- 
gressive difficulties 87 

*.  The  value  of  formal  drill 88 

j.  Individuals  vary  in  capacity  and  needs     .     .  89 
k.  What  may  be  required  by  the  end  of  the  third 

year <p 

13.  Handwriting  in  the  intermediate  grades    .     .     .  9«0 
a.  The  best  type  of  movement 91 

h.  Position  of  the  paper  and  of  the  arm,  and 
slant 96 

c.  Movement  drill 99 

d.  Rhythm  and  counting    .  ^ ,  104 

e.  Letter  groups  on  the  basis  of  movement  •<    .  106 

/.  Organization  of  exercises 109 

g.  Style  of  alphabet in 

14.  Handwriting  in  the  grammar  grades  .  .  .  .113 
a.  Prevent  the  pupil  from  falling  into  bad  habits  113 
h.  Increase  the  efficiency  of  his  habit  .     .     .     .113 

c.  Make  it  completely  automatic 114 

(i)  Avoid  continual  experimenting  with  the 

style  of  writing 114 

(2)  Use  one  style  in  both  writing  lessons  and 
other  school  work 115 

d.  The  method  of  meeting  these  demands    .    .115 


15s 


OUTLINE 


V.  AIMS  AND  STANDARDS  FOR 
HANDWRITING 

1.  The  qualities  of  excellence  in  handwriting     .    .118 

2.  Speed  and  its  measurement 119 

3.  The  quality  of  the  written  product       .    .     .    .122 

4.  Uniformity       123 

5.  The  charts  for  grading  uniformity  and  other 
characteristics       124 

6.  Uniformity  of  slant 127 

7.  Uniformity  of  alinement 128 

8.  Quality  of  the  line  or  stroke 1 29 

9.  Letter  formation 131 

id  Spacing 137 

11.  Grading  a  specimen  for  illustration  .     ....  139 

12.  Standards  of  attainment 142 


APPENDIX 


The  five  following  Charts  for  Diagnosing 
Faults  in  Handwriting  are  also  printed 

SEPARATELY  AND  SOLD  AS  A  BROADSIDE 


L 


u 


Chart  I. 


Uniformity  of  S\e 


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Chart  II. 


Uniformity  of  Allnement 


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ide  for  this  fact. 


Chart  III. 


Quality  of  Line 


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In  the  reproductiou  of  tliis  chart  the  lines  have  become  smoother.        Tliis  niodilicatioii  is  particularly  marked  in  the  case  of 
the  poorest  specimens.       In  using  the  chart,  therefore,  an  allowance  should  be  made  for  this  fact. 


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Chart  IV. 


Letter  Formatio 


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Chart  V. 


Spacing 


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95 


2  9      11 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  AT  LOS  ANGELES 

THE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 

This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  helow 


Jf 


"s 


r,^i* 


2419^ 


JAN  26: 942 


MV241M» 


JAN     4  19i>4 
JANiJTigBAl 


5  t941» 


Form  L-9 
207^-32, '39(3386) 


V 


AUG   2ie4' 

DEC  8    .1953 
ti£c  9     1953 


L06  ANGELES 


LB 

1590 

F87t 

cop,  1 


